The Curation of Practice [Video]

At the Land8x8 Lightning Talks in Miami, Simone Stark offered profound insights into the multifaceted nature of her profession and the vital role of authenticity and personal experience in shaping effective landscape architecture. Simone began her presentation by emphasizing the importance of authenticity in practice. “It begins with authenticity of self,” she stated. For Simone, the curatorial process of landscape architecture is rooted in the genuine display of one’s personal experiences, skills, and passions. This approach has defined her career, from founding and maintaining her own design-build studio since 2011 to leading the landscape architecture division at Strang Design since 2020, and teaching as an adjunct professor in the graduate program at Florida International University.

In discussing the profession’s legitimacy, Simone shared an anecdote from a conversation with a colleague, Roberto Rovira, highlighting the ongoing challenge of conveying the full scope of what landscape architects do. She sees this as a “good problem,” underscoring the …