From all of us at Terrain Work we wish you a Happy New Year in 2025! We look forward to what the new year brings with all of our friends, collaborators, and clients.
Happy 2025 From Terrain Work!
POP Rocks | San Francisco, CA
Terrain Work Featured in Seoul Biennale
Terrain Work with The New York 8 (Terrain Work, MMK+, Strange Works, Emergent Studio, and Dong-Sei Kim) Productive Han-Ga-Ram is currently being exhibited in the 2023 Seoul Biennale. The proposal was selected through an international competition for ideas to help imagine the future of Seoul for the next 100 years.
Our proposal, Productive Han-Ga-Ram, reimagines the Han River as Seoul's central public space by transforming its thirty bridges and its riverfronts into a collective green network. The existing bridges and the waterfronts will be gradually transformed into a productive and performative public infrastructure. This phased process will bring about a series of pedestrian-oriented platforms and spaces where energy is produced, and air and water are filtered. Productive Han-Ga-Ram amplifies Han River's ecological potential to trigger a series of sociopolitical transformations for Seoul's next 100 years. To learn more about our proposal click here.
Taystee Ribbon Cut with Governor Kathy Hochul
Terrain Work was delighted to be part of the ribbon cutting ceremonies for Taystee in West Harlem recently. Governor Kathy Hochul and Lt. Governor Brian Behjamin led the festivities along with Janus Property partners Scott Metzner and Jerry Salama. "The completion of the Taystee Lab Building is a milestone in the next chapter of Harlem's rich history," Governor Hochul said. "Anchoring the Manhattanville Factory District, the new state-of-the-art building will serve as the home for innovative companies developing the next generation of life science research and technology. As we continue to build back from the pandemic, today's investments that support our life science infrastructure will ensure that we are better prepared, better equipped and more resilient in the future."
Terrain Work is honored be part of this transformative project in West Harlem’s Manhattanville Factory District with Janus Property and LevenBetts Architects. For more on the Taystee landscape click here.
Terrain Work Creating New Civic Spaces at Capitol Crossing in Washington D.C.
Terrain Work is excited to reveal the landscape design for Capitol Crossing Center Block in Washington D.C. The landscapes of the Capitol Crossing Center Block each express the unique qualities of the geological transect found in the region beginning with Appalachian Plateau, cutting through the Blue Ridge and Piedmont regions, and ending at the Coastal Plains that surround Washington D.C. These outdoor spaces create a new civic realm in a mixed-use development above Interstate 395 with retail, a residential tower, and boutique hotel designed by Ennead Architects. For more about this project click here.
TERRAIN WORK COOKING UP LANDSCAPE FOR TAYSTEE SITE IN HARLEM
Terrain Work is working with Janus Property Group and LevenBetts architects to create a new landscape for the old Taystee Bakery complex in Harlem, New York. The Taystee development will establish a new connection from 125th Street to West 126th Street to become one of the defining landscapes in the Manhattanville Factory District.
The Janus Property Company has built a reputation for creativity, integrity and success, becoming a leader in transforming New York’s obsolete buildings and underutilized land into newly active and lively neighborhoods. Taystee is key anchor development in Janus’ one million square foot master-planned vision for the Factory District that will be a delicious addition to the community. Terrain Work is delighted to collaborate with Janus and their design team on this transformative project for Harlem.
"Unfolding Blooms," Proposal for Chelsea Art Gallery
Terrain Work was recently invited to submit a proposal for a private art gallery in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan. The proposal, Unfolding Blooms, is a collaboration between Terrain Work & Behin Ha and takes one of the simple pleasures in life - the unfolding of a bloom - and turns it into a fully immersive experience.
The artwork is comprised of a grid of three hundred and fifty mirrored spheres that each contain a mix of blooming flowers and cut branches in the manner of the art of Ikebana. The spheres float above the ground at different levels and are organized in rows spaced three feet apart to allow people to occupy a the space among the blooms. Unfolding Blooms creates an immersive experience that occurs through space and time where people can celebrate the simple beauty of a blossom opening. To learn more about unfolding blooms click here.
HUDSON COMMONS CONSTRUCTION IN MANHATTAN UNDERWAY!
Terrain Work is excited to announce that our project Hudson Commons at 441 9th Avenue in New York City has begun construction of the landscape! The project, in collaboration with COVE Property Group and KPF Architects, consists of 40,000 square feet of landscape that climbs up a commercial office tower. Hudson Commons offers premier office space in the heart of Manhattan providing an innovative approach to work-space environments that encourages indoor to outdoor interactivity with a landscape that is designed for both work and relaxation. To learn more about Hudson Commons click here or visit www.terrainwork.com.
Terrain Work's Theodore Hoerr Juror for Malecon Competition
Theodore Hoerr, Principal of Terrain Work, is a juror for the upcoming Malecon competition sponsored by Eleven Magazine. The competition, “Malecon: A Sea Defence & Cultural Space Challenge,” takes place in an iconic part of Havana, Cuba, and addresses the coastal vulnerability accelerated by climate change as well as “imagining a new wave of sociocultural design-led revival.” For more information on the competition and the opportunity for the public to vote visit Malecon: A Sea Defence & Cultural Space Challenge.
Vote For Terrain Work's Park Avenue Proposal: Text F005 to 502-219-3839
Terrain Work's design proposal "The New York Plant Circus" to re-imagine the future of Park Avenue in New York has been selected as a finalist for the Beyond the Centerline international design competition. To vote for our design text: F005 to 502-219-3839 (one vote per phone number allowed). Voting closes at 5 PM EST on Friday, March 9th. You can learn more about the competition by visiting Beyond the Centerline. To see our complete proposal for The New York Plant Circus click here.
Hudson Commons Begins Construction!
Terrain Work is excited to announce that our project Hudson Commons at 441 9th Avenue in New York City has begun construction! The project, in collaboration with COVE Property Group and KPF Architects, consists of 40,000 square feet of landscape that climbs up a commercial office tower. Hudson Commons offers premier office space in the heart of Manhattan providing an innovative approach to work-space environments that encourages indoor to outdoor interactivity with a landscape that is designed for both work and relaxation. To learn more about Hudson Commons click here or visit www.terrainwork.com.
Artist House: Terrain Work Design for a Mid-Century Modern House
Terrain Work has created a new landscape for the Artist House, a mid-century modern house set on a five-acre lot of a mature hardwood forest of oak, maple, and walnut trees in rural New Jersey. The house was originally designed and constructed by two local artists and educators, Robert and Rowena MacPhail, during the late 1950’s . The project is a collaboration with Gary Rosard Architect who is providing a full renovation and expansion of this exquisitely unique historical structure. The garden for the house draws upon the artwork that is thought to have influenced the artist's design of the structure with its sloping triangulated rooflines reminiscent of the works of Maholy-Nagy and Wassily Kandinsky. The garden takes two-dimensional concepts found in these artist's paintings and extends them into three dimensional expressions of space, color, and movement in the landscape. To learn more about the Artist House click here.
Terrain Work Designing the Landscape for 441 9th Avenue in Manhattan
Terrain Work is collaborating with COVE Property Group and KPF on a new project at 441 9th Avenue in Manhattan. The plan is to reposition 441 Ninth Avenue as a “new” Class-A office development targeted to meet the needs of various tenants including TAMI (Technology, Advertising, Media and Information), fashion, financial and legal tenants. We are thrilled to work with a world class team of design and development experts in the heart of Manhattan. Stay tuned for more to come on this project at www.terrainwork.com
Terrain Work is Hiring!
Terrain Work is looking for a creative and enthusiastic Landscape Architect or Designer with 1-4 years of working experience. Individuals with strong design and graphic representation abilities who are able to take drawings through construction are preferred. Candidates must be proficient in Rhino, AutoCAD, and the Adobe Suite to be considered for this position. Ability to sketch and/or build models with an interest in hybrid graphic practices is desirable. If you are interested in working in a small atelier practice where you will have the potential to grow with the company, please email your resume and work samples to thoerr@terrainwork.com. Please no phone calls.
Terrain Work is a New York City based design firm founded by Theodore Hoerr whose work explores how the emergent qualities of nature and culture create new forms and experiences in the built environment. They approach each project with a curiosity and collaborative spirit born out of the belief that landscapes should perform as both cultural provocateur and ecological system.
Theodore Hoerr Preaching Plants at RISD
Theodore Hoerr, Founding Principal of Terrain Work, will be teaching Plants & Design at RISD with fellow plant aficionado Adam Anderson of Design Under Sky this spring. We will focus on how to innovate with plants in design and bring these living creatures back to the forefront of the design conversation in landscape architecture.
Over the last few decades plants have often been reduced to "green infrastructure" while the discourse surrounding them has been limited to largely ecological functions. These issues are important, no doubt, but they cast plants as more an instrumental tool rather than an artful muse. Plants have also been frequently maligned as just another "material" along with the likes of stone, brick, or concrete. We aim to change this. Along with our students our course will explore how plants have the ability to create culture, shape space, and provide atmospheric effects creating new experiences in the built environment. If there are any plant lovers out there we would love to hear your thoughts on this topic! Contact us at thoerr@terrainwork.com.
Terrain Work Playing 'Mind Games'
Terrain Work recently created 'Mind Games' a temporary garden that explores our perceptions of childhood through the lens of adulthood. The garden is at once a representation of these myriad states of being, and a sensory experience that invites both children and adults to play in a field of fallen leaves - ten thousand balls of yellow, orange, and red. Mind Games is currently trying to find a home. If you are interested in speaking to us about implementing this project please contact us. To learn more about 'Mind Games' click here
In Memoriam: Diana Balmori
It is with a heavy heart to share that on November 14th, 2016, Diana Balmori passed away. Diana was a mentor, teacher, and confidant to many people over the years, including me. She always made time for the intellectually curious, whether it was a nascent student of landscape architecture or an established contemporary. Her influence was broad and wide-ranging, and her passion for landscape as a medium that could transform the way we live and interact with nature was second to none.
For five years we spent countless hours together, both working in her office as well as teaching at Yale. When I first came to work in her office in early 2011 it was unlike any other environment that I had experienced in the past, both professional or academic. From the outset there was a relentless fervor and zeal placed on how to draw and how the process of drawing played a fundamental role in seeing and conceptualizing landscape. This idea of drawing was not limited to a particular instrument – computer, pencil, pen, etc. - nor was it exclusive to a particular medium – drawing, painting, collage, physical models, dioramas, digital models, film, video. It was wide open. Experimentation was always encouraged and a fundamental part of her work. I once heard the saying, “To draw is to see the world with your eye, mind, and your heart.” Diana embodied this approach and used it to push the boundaries of envisioning landscape. By doing so, she moved the discipline and discourse of landscape forward. Among her many accomplishments perhaps one of the most impactful and enduring qualities she instilled in me, and I suspect many others working in her office through the years, was the ability to see landscape anew.
The profession of landscape architecture has lost a visionary, but beyond that, many of us have lost a mentor, colleague, friend, and family member. Diana will be missed, but her ideas will live on in the people and places she inspired. A link to her obituary in the NY Times can be found here. Image courtesy of Balmori Associates
Theodore Hoerr, Founding Principal
Terrain Work
Urban Sponge Garden Nears Completion
Construction for Terrain Work's Urban Sponge Garden in Hoboken is nearing completion. This small garden will have a broad impact. Learn more about how this space contributes to a larger city wide initiative to manage stormwater runoff in Hoboken at www.terrainwork.com. Come visit the garden on June 5th when it will be featured on the Hoboken Secret Garden Tour.
SoHo Tower in the News
SoHo Tower was recently in the news after architect Renzo Piano Building Workshop unveiled the design scheme for this residential development in Manhattan. Theodore Hoerr led the landscape architectural design for this project while a Principal at Balmori Associates. Find out more about SoHo Tower landscape at terrainwork.com.
Terrain Work Launches Website!
Terrain Work, a NYC based Landscape Architecture and Urban Design office founded by Theodore Hoerr, has officially launched its website today. Come see our work at www.terrainwork.com