Oehme, van Sweden & Associates

Oehme, van Sweden & Associates is a Washington, D.C. based landscape architecture firm known for its focus on sustainability in landscape architecture. It was founded in 1975 by Wolfgang Oehme and James van Sweden.^[1] The firm is a proponent of the "New American Garden" style, which is characterized by large swaths of grasses and fields of perennials.^[2]

Notable works of OvS' include the landscape architectural design for the Federal Reserve Campus in Washington, DC; The National World War II Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial, Tippet Rise Art Centre in Fishtail, MT; and multiple commissions at both Chicago Botanic Garden and The New York Botanical Garden,^[3] including the Native Plant Garden.

Design philosophy

OvS' designs embrace the ideals of low-input landscaping: plant diversity with limited inputs of pesticides, fertilizer, water, and maintenance.^[4] The firm aims to integrate new projects and plantings into natural landscapes and ecosystems, and in these, create landscaping and gardens which react to the changes in seasons and weather.^[5]^[6]

Key persons

Wolfgang Oehme - Co-founded OvS with James van Sweden. Worked at OvS from its founding until retiring in 2008.^[7]

James van Sweden - Co-founded OvS with Wolfgang Oehme. Worked at OvS until retiring due to illness in 2011.^[6]^[8]

Lisa Delplace - Director and CEO Emeritus of OvS; has worked there since 1988.^[9]

Eric Groft - Owner and director of OvS; has worked there since 1986.^[10]

Sheila Brady - Principal partner of OvS; has worked there since 1987.^[11]

Awards and honours

The firm was named recipient of the American Society of Landscape Architects' 2014 Landscape Architecture Firm Award. The award recognizes a “distinguished body of work that influences the professional practice of landscape architecture.”

The firm's project to improve the landscaping for a block of town homes in the Ellen Wilson neighbourhood of Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., was recognized with an American Institute of Architects Honor Award in 1998.^[3] In the same year, the firm received a Residential Design Honor Award from the American Society of Landscape Architects for their work on a residential Coastal Island Retreat on Pine Island, South Carolina.^[12]

Publications

van Sweden, James and Christopher, Tom (2011). The Artful Garden: Creative Inspiration for Landscape Design. Random House. ISBN 978-1-4000-6389-5
van Sweden, James and Christopher, Tom (2002). Architecture in the Garden. Random House. ISBN 978-0-375-50154-8.
van Sweden, James (1997). Gardening With Nature. Random House. ISBN 978-0-8230-2078-2.
van Sweden, James (1995). Gardening With Water. Random House. ISBN 978-0-679-42946-3.

References

^ "Oehme, van Sweden & Associates | The Cultural Landscape Foundation". www.tclf.org. Retrieved 2022-08-09.
^ "The New American Garden, The Landscape Architecture of Oehme, van Sweden (The Cultural Landscape Foundation)". www.tclf.org. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
^ ^a ^b "Portfolio". Oehme, van Sweden & Associates. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
^ "Friendship Garden: Low Maintenance and Lovely". United States National Arboretum. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
^ Ruane, Michael E. (April 2012). "MLK Memorial fits in with its surroundings". The Washington Post Cherry Blossom Special Section 2012.
^ ^a ^b Higgins, Adrian (September 23, 2013). "James van Sweden dies at 78; innovative landscape architect". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2022-08-09.
^ "Wolfgang Oehme | The Cultural Landscape Foundation". www.tclf.org. Retrieved 2022-08-09.
^ Higgins, Adrian (2013-05-17). "Public gardens: A new model blossoms". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
^ "Lisa Delplace". Linkedin. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
^ "Eric Groft". Linkedin. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
^ "Sheila Brady". Linkedin. Retrieved 2022-08-10.
^ "Residential Design Honor Award". ASLA 2008 Professional Awards. American Society of Landscape Architects. Retrieved 9 April 2013.