A pattern language for Roberto Burle Marx landscape design

Abstract

Patterns were developed by Christopher Alexander [2] to synthesize rules of good design practice. Although he does not tell us where he took his patterns from, it is possible to infer that they are the result of his sensible observation of existing situations in European cities. However, these solutions are not necessarily true for situations in other countries, with different climates, economies and societies.The Brazilian landscape designer Roberto Burle Marx is considered to have achieved the highest level of excellence and success in his designs for private gardens and public open spaces. In other words, there is no doubt about his being considered a "specialist", in the AI (artificial Intelligence) sense, in his field. The present paper proposes a systematization of the knowledge present in the work of Brazilian landscape designer Marx as "patterns" that can be used by students to overcome their difficulties related to the lack of professional experience. © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.