March/April 2014 | 31
Every Tree
Tells a Story
S
hould not the role of design be to
reconnect human beings with their
space on their land?"
This insightful question came from the late
landscape architect Dan Kiley. This year's
Landslide, The Cultural Landscape Foundation's
annual thematic compendium of threatened
and at-risk landscapes, is dedicated to the
life and work of Kiley (1912-2004), one
of the nation's most important Post War
landscape architects.
To honor Kiley and his legacy, and call
attention to the need for informed and effective
stewardship of his work, TCLF has organized
a traveling photographic exhibition: The
Landscape Legacy of Dan Kiley. The exhibition,
which opened at the Boston Architectural
College on Nov. 14, 2013, is on view at the
National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.
through May 18 this year. It will be displayed at
three venues in Indiana this summer and early
fall, then in Pittsburgh, Pa., through the rest
of the year. The Davey Tree Expert Company
is a presenting sponsor of the exhibition, and
Hartney Greymont was the opening reception
sponsor. (For all 2014 scheduled Kiley exhibit
dates, visit http://tclf.org/sites/default/files/
microsites/kiley-legacy/exhibition.html. The
2015 venues will be announced at a later time.)
The exhibition features 45 newly
commissioned photographs of 27 of Kiley's
more than 1,000 designs, including the Miller
House and Garden, Columbus, Ind.; the Art
Institute of Chicago South Garden, Chicago,
Ill.; and Patterns, a garden for Gov. & Mrs.
Pierre S. "Pete" du Pont IV in Delaware.
Many of Kiley's designs prominently
feature trees. His most famous project is the
Miller House and Garden in Columbus, Ind.
(pictured above), which was acquired by the
Indianapolis Museum of Art and opened
to the public in 2011.
As a former Kiley employee, Gregg
Bleam wrote, "The Miller garden represents
transformation. Kiley extended the lines of
the interior rooms … to form a structure
ofgrids that would order the surrounding
gardens. By using the classical planting forms
of bosques, hedges and allees juxtaposed
against flat ground planes of crushed stone
or lawn, Kiley extended the diagram of the
house design to the remaining site."
That's why, "when the 100th anniversary
of Kiley's birth came and went last year—and
nothing happened," says TCLF Founder and
President Charles A. Birnbaum, "The Cultural
Landscape Foundation decided to mount a
tribute to this great modernist landscape archi-
tect. This exhibition highlights his extraordinary
legacy and the fragility of his works."
''
Honoring an Influential
Landscape Architect
