An article produced by Landscape, landscape design special Edition Articles on 27 May 2023

 An article produced by Landscape, landscape design Special Edition Articles on 27 May 2023

listed the following as the top ten landscape architects:-

"West 8 Urban Design and Landscape Architecture, founded by Adriaan Geuze and Paul van Beek in Rotterdam, Netherlands in 1987.  It is know for its contemporary designs and innovative solutions to urban planning problems, using lighting, metal structures and color.  Van Beek is no longer part of the firm."(wikipaedia)

"Gustafson, Porter and Bowman, founded by Gustafson and Neil Porter in 1997, is situated in London.  The firm has international projects in the UK, Asia, Europe and the Middle East."  Before that Gustafson "was established in Seattle" in a firm called Gustafson Guthrie Nichol which was Gustafson, Jennifer Guthrie and Shannon Nichol.  "Gustafson is slated to recreate the area around the Eiffel tower for the 2024  Olympic Games." "She is known for her ability to create sculptural forms, using earth, grass stone and water." (wikipaedia).  Mary Bowman joined the practice in 2002.  Kathryn, Neil and Mary, together with partners Sibylla Hartel and Donncha O'Shea are supported by a wider team of landscape architects from around the world." (nla.london/members/gustafson-porter-bowman).

James Corner Field Operations, originally founded in co-operation with architect Stan Allen but in 2005 they  decided to concentrate on their own practices. Field Operations is at the forefront of the landscape urbanism movement. (wikipaedia)

"Snohetta. formed in 1987 by Norwegian, Kjetil Thorsen, and a group of young architects.  They named it Snohetta after the tallest mountain in Dovrefjell National Park.  In 1989 they joined forces with New York architect, Craig Dykers, to enter the competition to design a replacement for the Library of Alexandria, (they won, and winning design for Bibliotheca Alexandrina was completed in 2001)." (wikipaedia).

"Sasaki was founded in 1953 by landscape architect Hideo Sasaki while he served as a professor and landscape architecture chair at the Harvard Graduate School of Design." He died in 2000 and his family and his legacy and other financial supporters established the Sasaki Foundation. "The foundation which is a separate entity from Sasaki, gives yearly grants, supporting community-led research at Sasaki." "In 2013, Sasaki opened an office in Shanghai to support the firm's work in China and the larger Asia Pacific region," It "is a design firm Civil Engineering and Place Branding.  The firm is headquartered in Boston, Massachussets but practices on an international scale, with offices in Shanghai and Denver, Colorado, and clients and projects globally." (wikipaedia)

Balmori associates.  founder Diana Balmori Ling, June 4, 1932 - November 14, 2016.  Born in Gijon, Spain. She studied in architecture in Argentina.  She then taught in Oswego, New York and did seminars at Yale. Before she founded Balmori Associates in 1990, she worked for Cesar Pelli Associates. "Balmori wrote on cities, environment, and the history of design."  Two years before she died, "her company moved to Soho, New York city." (wikipaedia)

"SWA group was originally founded in 1957 as Sasaki Walker & Associates, (Hideo Sasaki with Peter Walker) and in 1973, became one of the first companies on the West coast to be owned by an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP): a vehicle that has resulted in the company becoming 100% employee owned." "Despite being one of the largest firms of its type in the world, SWA is organized into smaller studio-based offices that enhance creativity and client  responsiveness.  Each studio has the autonomy to procure work.

" From American Society of Landscape Architects (www.asla.org/uploaded files/swa_historypdf.PDF file) Sasaki was "chair of Harvard's department of landscape architecture . .became a colleague of other Harvard design professionals and began collaborations that ultimately became his legacy." "In the 1970's, the firm officially changed its name to SWA group in order to reinforce its emerging group practice philosophy." "In 1974, Kalvin Platt moved into the role of President as Peter Walker returned to Harvard" (Platt had also studied at Harvard). "Today the firm operates six offices - Sausalito, San Francisco, and Laguna Beach, California, Houston and Dallas, Texas, and Shanghai, China. Led "by younger principals."

Martha Schwartz Partners - Martha was "born November 21, 1950." "An American landscape architect and educator." She studied at Michigan and Harvard. "In 1979 she married noted landscape architect Peter Walker and divorced in 2000" "She began her own architecture firm in 1980. (wikipaedia)

Turenscape, founded by Kongjian Yu, now Dean of the  College of Architecture and Landscape at Peking University, one of the first and largest landscape architecture firms that practise sustainable urbanism in China (www.turenscape.com)

Michael van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA).  "Michael Robert Van Valkenburgh, born 5 Sept 1951 is an American landscape architect and educator." He went to University of Illinois and  became a professor in Design at Harvard.  "He has been recognized for his ability to successfully integrate new methods of sustainable design and ecological renewal into . .designs." He has "designed many celebrated urban parks." He founded Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates (MVVA) in 1982." Currently leads the firm with five partners. (wikipaedia).