Buildings

Regent's Park in London
Palatial houses surround, enclose and define the landscape of Regent’s Park in London

Buildings can and should be designed to frame open space. In London, the best example is the Nash Terraces which define and contain Regent’s Park. It is a brilliant example of how landscape and architecture can be integrated to produce a whole which is greater than the sum of its parts.

Landscape and architecture can and should work together to create good streets: More London
Landscape and architecture can and should work together to create good streets: More London

Elsewhere, buildings are used to frame streets. From the standpoint of urban design, the worst mistake is to treat buildings merely as sculptural objects. At More London, for which Robert Townshend was the landscape architect, the axial space has good integration of landscape with architecture. The spaces east and west of the axis are blank and empty.