Andrea Cochran: Landscapes

Andrea Cochran: Landscapes by Myers, Mary. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9781568988122.

“Studies in repetition and order, orchestrations of movement in the landscape, and elements placed in geometric conversation,” is how author Mary Myers describes the twenty-five-year career of San Francisco–based landscape architect Andrea Cochran. Poetic language suits these functional and often lyrical works of art. They are sensuous, captivating oases that absorb the eye in a totality of spatial composition. Andrea Cochran: Landscapes presents eleven residential, commercial, and institutional landscape projects in detail, including Walden Studios in Alexander Valley, California; the sculpture garden for the Portland Art Museum in Portland, Oregon; and the award-winning Children’s Garden in San Francisco. Drawing on an encyclopedic knowledge of plant species, Cochran uses vegetation to blur edges, and porous and permeable materials to create grade changes that enlighten and disappear. Materials such as COR-TEN steel allow her to draw boundaries on the land with ultrathin edges while also reflecting the earthy tones of the soil beneath.