Julia Watson (born 1977) is an Australian born author, researcher, lecturer, and

landscape designer Landscape design is an independent profession and a design and art tradition, practiced by landscape designers, combining nature and culture. In contemporary practice, landscape design bridges the space between landscape architecture and garde ...

based in New York City. Watson is an expert on nature-based indigenous technologies and focuses her work at the intersection of anthropology, ecology and innovation. She is the founder and principal of Julia Watson Studio, a landscape and urban design studio. Watson is the author of ''Lo-TEK: Design by Radical Indigenism'', and teaches at the Columbia University Graduate School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation in New York.

Early life

Julia Watson was born in 1977 and grew up in the West End of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, an inner city neighbourhood with rich indigenous history, which she credits to her interest in indigenous design. Her mother, born in Egypt, is a first generation immigrant of Greek ethnicity, and her father is Australian. Watson decided to pursue architecture in her teens, saying: "that decision came about in high school to console my parents who were worried because all I wanted was to be an artist."

Education

Early on in her education, Watson was exposed to a strong indigenous design methodology through the Aboriginal Environments Research Centre (AERC) at the

University of Queensland The University of Queensland is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone ...

. There, she was taught by Paul Mammott on Aboriginal environments which "lifted a veil" on her perception of landscape. After receiving her BA in Architecture and Planning in 1998, she went on to complete her Graduate Diploma of Landscape Architecture (GDLA) at the

Queensland University of Technology The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is a public university, public research university located in the city of Brisbane in Queensland, Australia. It has two major campuses, a modern city campus in Gardens Point, Brisbane, Gardens Point ...

in 2001. Her interest in indigenous design methodology carried on throughout her education, culminating in a move to the US in 2006 to pursue a Master of Landscape Architecture at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD). There she continued her studies focusing on sacred indigenous landscapes and their contestation, and graduating with a specialization in living landscape eco-technologies and the preservation of sacred cultural space. Graduating from the GSD she earned the highest distinction in the landscape architecture department, graduating as both a Charles Eliot and Olmsted Fellow (2008).

Career

Private practice

While studying landscape architecture at Queensland University of Technology, Watson worked for John Mongard and Jacqueline Ratcliffe at John Mongard Landscape Architects as a landscape technician. She then moved to London, where she worked for Lord Kenilworth at Randle Siddeley Associates on multiple landscape projects. Watson has also worked for Context Landscape Design in Sydney, and Toshiko Mori Architect in the US.

Teaching

Watson has taught

Urban Design Urban design is an approach to the design of buildings and the spaces between them that focuses on specific design processes and outcomes based on geographical location. In addition to designing and shaping the physical features of towns, city, ...

at Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation, Harvard Graduate School of Design, Rhode Island School of Design, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Fellowships

* Robert S. Brown Fellow (2013) * Pop!tech Social Innovation Fellow (2013) * REALITY Fellow (2016)

Julia Watson Studio

Studio REDE

Watson's studio began as Studio REDE (Studio for Research and Design) in New York in 2013, shortly after graduating from the Harvard GSD. The studio was described as "working at the intersection of anthropology, ecology, innovation, and conservation". They worked on large-scale projects that merged Watson's human-centered design approach with a sensitive ecological approach, allowing users to engage with nature on both physical and spiritual levels. Studio REDE was framed as a design collaborative, bringing individuals from allied professions such as anthropologists, digital agencies, governments, and foundations to create partnerships with local communities with the goal of creating alternative co-management models.

Watson Salembier

On April 22, 2020 Watson joined Marie Salembier to formally launch their landscape and urban design studio Watson Salembier. The studio focused on local, site-specific interventions and

rewilding Rewilding is a form of ecological restoration aimed at increasing biodiversity and restoring natural processes. It differs from other forms of ecological restoration in that rewilding aspires to reduce human influence on ecosystems. It is also d ...

spaces.

Julia Watson Studio

Watson is currently principal of her eponymous studio, Julia Watson Studio, which is a full service landscape and urban design studio that combines the ethical qualities of Studio REDE with the rewilding goals of Watson Salembier. They also work on a commission basis and consult for Fortune 500 companies to align their missions with global sustainability goals.

Work

Watson's interest in indigenous technologies is displayed through her work with indigenous communities such as the proposal for Bali's first UNESCO World Heritage Site wherein she collaborated with Stephen Lansing. She has authored numerous papers on indigenous technologies and their possible implications for modern landscape architecture. This interest also extends to native planting schemes, having implemented place-based projects that implement indigenous planting such as ''Rewilding the American Meadow'' at New York's

Rockefeller Center Rockefeller Center is a complex of 19 commerce, commercial buildings covering between 48th Street (Manhattan), 48th Street and 51st Street (Manhattan), 51st Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. The 14 original Art De ...

Plaza.

Notable projects

* Rockefeller Center Channel Gardens (2023) * Dubai Central Business District Master Plan (2017) * Bali UNESCO World Heritage Plan (2013–2014)

Lo-TEK

''Lo-TEK: Design by Radical Indigenism'', authored by Watson is a compilation of indigenous land-based traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) from various groups around the globe. The information was gathered first hand by Watson over seven years, and spotlights nature-based infrastructures such as the

Living Root Bridges Living root bridges are a kind of tree shaping in which rivers are spanned by bridges formed out of the roots of ficus plants. Due to their being made from living, growing trees, they "show a very wide variety of structural typologies, with ...

of the

Khasi people The Khasi people are an Austroasiatic languages, Austroasiatic Ethnicity, ethnic group of Meghalaya in north-eastern India with a significant population in the bordering state of Assam and in certain parts of Bangladesh. Khasi people form the ...

in India and the floating island homes of the Ma'dan in Iraq, made from qasab reeds. The book highlights TEK case studies from mountain landscapes, forests, deserts, and wetlands. The book has been featured in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'', ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', ''Dwell'', ''Vogue'', ''

Architectural Digest ''Architectural Digest'' (stylized in all caps) is an American monthly magazine founded in 1920. Its principal subjects are interior design and landscaping, rather than pure external architecture. The magazine is published by Condé Nast ...

'', and ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

''. In 2020, Watson presented a TED talk highlighting some of these case studies.

Awards

* AIGA 50 Books 50 Covers Winner, 2019 * ADC Annual Awards, Merit Honor, Publication Design, 2020 * Arnold W. Brunner Grant for Architectural Research, 2022 * Architecture + Design Independent Project Grant, 2022 * Arthur Ross Awards for Excellence in the Classical Tradition 2024

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Julia 1977 births Living people University of Queensland alumni Queensland University of Technology alumni Harvard Graduate School of Design alumni Australian landscape and garden designers Australian expatriates in the United States