The Study Of Dan Kiley's Modern Landscape Design

Dan Kiley (1912-2004) is the most important modern landscape architect in U.S, he has made great contribution to the modern landscape architecture. From 1930's, the western landscape architecture had been fallen under the effect of the modernism movement very much. The old tradition was collapsed, the modern Landscape Architecture began its development. Dan Kiley was, with no doubt, very important in this movement. He and his classmates Garrett Eckbo and James Rose leaded the "Harvard Revolution" together, they took the idea of modernism into the landscape design. At the same time, Dan Kiley was very versed in Europe's tradition garden, especially in the France classicalism garden. His landscape design united the modernism and the classicalism perfectly. The study of him will improve our understanding of the western modern landscape architecture.It is on this cognition that the study will illustrate Dan Kiley's design work as well as his design philosophy in further. We hope to discover his special vocabulary of design and the soul hidden in his work. This will greatly impulse the development of our landscape architecture. The thesis will be dissected the following parts:1. His family and education background by which to find how the modernism influenced his design career, and opens out the succeed reason of his long-time work.2. Modernism, classicalism and the naturalism in transcendentalism are the important content of Dan Kiley's design philosophy. The thesis explains them carefully and points out that the aim of Dan Kiley's works is to link the relationship between human being and nature.3. The introduction of Dan Kiley's typical works summarizes three characters on his design: the inerratic and pure structure, the use for reference of the Classicalism element, the variety and infinity modern space.4. Standing on contemporary social background and his career, the thesis analyzes Dan Kiley's design style, summarizes the customarily design tact: construct the space and order by common geometries, the connection and transition of context, the magic use of basic nature elements. The thesis also expatiate his design philosophy primary, and summarizes his view of landscape education.Based on the four parts, the thesis makes a deeper thinking about Dan Kiley's landscape design within the whole profession framework. Take a whole perceive on the form, content and function of his work and points out that inherit and innovate is the major clew of Dan Kiley's design career. The thesis also summarizes the style and philosophy of Dan Kiley's landscape design at the end.