The evening will include a social hour with a cash bar, live music a buffet-style dinner, our speaker program with Q & A, followed by dessert and conversation.
April 26, 2022 marked the 200th anniversary of the birth of Frederick Law Olmsted, the master designer of public parks who founded the modern field of landscape architecture practice in the U.S. Join historian and filmmaker Laurence Cotton (originator of and consulting producer to the PBS special Frederick Law Olmsted: Designing America) for a deep dive into the remarkable life and career of Olmsted: writer, philosopher, social reformer, advocate for the preservation of natural scenery, and creator of some of the most beautiful public and private parks and gardens in all of North America, including New York’s Central Park. Cotton will guide a visual tour of representative masterful landscapes designed by Olmsted, as well as his two sons, the founders of the fabled Olmsted Brothers firm. Laurence will offer a tour of select Olmsted landscapes in Florida and the Southeastern states.
Laurence Cotton, currently based in Portland, Oregon, a city that benefits from an Olmsted-planned park system, originally hails from Boston, renowned for its Olmsted landscapes and the home base forgenerations of landscape design practitioners working for the Olmsted Brothers firm. A practicing public historian, and writer/producer of historical films for PBS, Cotton trained as a cultural anthropologist and brings that lens to bear on much of his work. He has worked with the tribal populations throughout the Columbia River watershed and has also worked on open space acquisition and the designs of parks and trails in the Pacific Northwest.
Parks are for all people.
As we celebrate the bicentennial of Frederick Law Olmsted’s birth, let’s work together to make sure we can all enjoy and access parks in our neighborhoods today and tomorrow!
