Welcome and introduction to FOLAR by Annabel Downs, and why archives are so important especially for future generations; Brian Clouston’s early career in Durham and Northumberland; oral history clip by Lindsay K Abbott (2012)...
Read MoreA celebration of Brian Clouston’s Career in Landscape Architecture
Section One: Introduction; Early days and the formation of the practice; Reclamation; Garden Festivals; Work in the Middle East, Work in Asia and Australia; Urban renewal and Rural infrastructure; Business Parks
Section Two: Legacy Practices and practice, discussion
Section Three: Brian Clouston’s future vision
These sessions were chaired by Annie Coombs FLI who was Managing Director of BCP Asia and Tim Gale PPLI who was a Director of BCP. There are two oral history interviews with Brian Clouston held at the MERL one made in 2012 with Lyndsey Abbott and the other done as part of this celebration in September 2023
Landscape architect Brian Clouston OBE, past president of the Landscape Institute, established a landscape practice in the 1960s that became multi-disciplinary and operated internationally. By the 1990s it was one of the leading practices in the UK and employed more people than any other in Europe. FOLAR wanted to learn more about Brian Clouston, what he did, how he attracted so many young talented staff and what type of projects they worked on. FOLAR also wanted to know what they went on to do on leaving BCP. So we invited lots of former staff to tell their stories at an event in September 2023, with Brian Clouston as the star. Brian continues to think about the role and contribution that landscape architects can make to society and to world affairs and in an interview, and he chose this opportunity to discuss his current big vision for Africa. We recorded this event and two interviews with Brian Clouston, as a contribution to the oral history of the profession of landscape architecture.
William Cairns and Brian Clouston were both students at the Royal Botanic Gardens Edinburgh, following national service; both influenced by landscape architect Jane Wood to follow her profession, and both...
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Reclaiming spoiled and contaminated land was the foundation of the early practice and Mark Loxton presents three examples from Sunderland, the outer London borough of Hillingdon, and Devon, of burning colliery waste transformed into...
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Garden festivals build on technical skills and expertise acquired through Brian Clouston Partnership’s (BCP) reclamation work. But how did the first garden festival in Liverpool happen? Hal Moggridge tells the story about a meeting...
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5. Work in the Middle EastGordon Bell, a young landscape graduate, began working for BCP in 1972 with John Kelsey as partner in charge; colleagues in the office included Jerry Emery, Malc McNulty, Terry Taylor, John Madden, Fritz de Zutter, and office...
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Annie Coombs reflects on working in Hong Kong as part of BCP where the office felt like a family. The Junk Bay [Tseung Kwan O] study almost completed when Annie joined Mark Loxton, Alan Tate, Henry Steed Jennifer Steed and...
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Barry Scholefield set up Brian Clouston and Partners (BCP) Glasgow office in 1972 and was soon involved in a design competition for the River Clyde, reaching stage two while coping with Conservative...
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Robert Holden on Aztec West (Bristol) and Capability Green (Luton). A time when the car was dominant and the campus had to hide the car parks, inspiring an early use of lakes. Clients had long term interest (eg pension funds) with...
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As a Californian, Michael Smiley highlighted the importance of community in landscape architecture, not only in terms of creating and revitalising communities, but also the need to foster community at...
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Landscape Architect Tom Robinson interviews Brian Clouston on his next ‘big idea’. Having read Richard St Barbe Baker’s Men of the Trees as a student, Brian explains his long held interest in North Africa, once the...
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