This past Wednesday, October 19th, a special reception was hosted as the kickoff event for the two-day Olmsted symposium being held at Planting Fields. The event featured a keynote presentation by John Dixon Hunt, Professor Emeritus of Landscape Architecture at University of Pennsylvania, an expert on garden history and theory.
The reception was graciously hosted by Claudio and Debra Del Vecchio in their Olmsted Brothers designed estate, La Selva. In attendance were John Reddick of Central Park Conservancy, Dede Petri of NAOP, NY State Parks Commissioner Erik Kulleseid, and Kathryn Curran, Executive Director of the Robert D.L. Gardiner Foundation. Welcoming remarks and notes of thanks were shared by Gina Wouters, President and CEO of Planting Fields Foundation, and Hal Davidson, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at Planting Fields.
Hal Davidson.John Dixon Hunt.Gina Wouters.Dede Petri.Commissioner Erik Kulleseid.
To celebrate Olmsted 200, a nation-wide commemoration of the bicentennial of the birth of Frederick Law Olmsted Sr., father of American Landscape Architecture, Planting Fields Foundation is hosting a week of scholarship, community, and programming that will celebrate both the Olmsted legacy and the central contributions made by the Olmsted Brothers firm at this site in the first half of the twentieth century, which continue to shape Planting Fields today.
L. to r.: Gina Wouters, John Reddick, and Dede Petri; Gina Wouters, Erik Kulleseid, and Kathryn Curran.Daniel MacKay, Gina Wouters, Erik Kulleseid, and George Gorman.L. to r.: Mary Andriotis; David Almeida.Dede Petri, Witold Rybczynski, and Jerome Singerman.L. to r.: Debra Del Vecchio, Hal Davidson, and Gina Wouters; Amy Xu with friends Lydia and Sergio.Christine O’Hara, Emily Cooperman, and Pamela Hartford.Michael Kempner, Robert Mackay, Stephen Watters, Amy Xu, Debra Del Vecchio, Hal Davidson, Gina Wouters, and Bruce Addison.Liz McLanahan, Christie Robinson, Peter Blohm, and Diane V.L. to r.: Bruce Addison, Gina Wouters, and Mario Nievera; Mary McDonald and Patricia O’Donnell.Roger Crum, Gina Wouters, Arleyn Levee, Charles Birnbaum, and Nord W.L. to r.: Isabel Padilla Bonelli; Victoria Vanhuss of NAOP.L. to r.: Gina Wouters and Charles Birnbaum; James Hogarty.L. to r.: Mr. and Mrs. William Langdon; Nola Anderson and John Pate.L. to r.: Hal and Sally Davidson; Witold Rybczynski.L. to r.: John Reddick; Patricia O’Donnell, Laurie Olin, and Emily Cooperman.L. to r.: Kathy and Michael Weiss; Claudio and Debra Del Vecchio.Danielle DiMeo, Laura Casale, and Cathy Barry.L. to r.: Dede Petri; Pamela Hartford.Emily Cooperman and John Dixon Hunt.L. to r.: Witold Rybczynski and Gina Wouters; John Dixon Hunt and Gina Wouters.Christine O’Hara, Pamela Hartford, and Jean Luc Howell.Michelle Gokey, Victoria Kempner, and Nancy Sambuco.L. to r.: Sara Zewde; Daniel Mackay and Gina Wouters.Robert Foschi, Margaret Foschi, and Vincent Simeone.Duncan C. Sahner and Tim Dooley.L. to r.: Frank Kirby and Tracey Edwards; Richard Guy Wilson.John Dixon Hunt and Laurie Olin.Anthony Reed and Brianne Cassetta.
