LOLA Landscape Architects is an office for progressive landscape architecture. LOLA (LOst LAndscapes) studies and designs landscapes that are forgotten, have degraded, are derelict or on the verge of change. LOLA has got an optimistic and conceptual approach to these landscapes and a fascination for new spatial phenomena. Whether in the city, the outskirts or the countryside, we aim to design sublime places that are beautiful, surprising and thriving.
LOLA believes in a combination of continuous research, experiment and design. We match knowledge of landscapes and of large-scale ecosystems with contemporary ideas about people, space and nature. Being designers with an integrated approach to projects, we continuously partner with other offices and institutions with specific knowledge and experience.
LOLA was founded in 2006 by the landscape architects Eric-Jan Pleijster, Cees van der Veeken and Peter Veenstra. A total of 20 people now work in the office, ranging from landscape architects to architects and urban designers. The office is based in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, but operates worldwide for governments, provinces, municipalities, non-governmental organizations and project developers.
LOLA designs public spaces like parks and squares, works on redevelopment plans in city and countryside, and develops landscape transformation strategies and spatial researches. Projects of LOLA have been build and/or published around the world. For the total of our work, LOLA received the Rotterdam-Maaskant Prize for Young Architects and the TOPOS landscape award.
adidas Group headquarters campus is located in Herzogenaurach in Bavaria, Germany. The world renowned sports brand, continuously works on the future of sport and fashion at this site. The campus will be expanded in the coming years with new buildings, added security features, upgraded access, and a totalmakeover of the landscape. LOLA landscape architects has been awarded the contract in collaboration with a team of consultants and designers after a closed competition. Over the next few years the plan will begin to be implemented. The main ingredient of the design are four individual stars that link the entire campus together. These twelve meter wide brightly colored stars are integrated into the fabric of the campus and mark the nodes where employees of adidas meet for many activities and events. On and around the stars are numourous different designed programmatic elements that refer to the diversity of sports that adidas is known for. The elements of outdoor activity zones stand like sculptures in the landscape and contain unique places for play, sport, work or relaxation.
Type of project: landscape design/campus / Design: 2015 / Construction: 2015-2025 / Location: Herzogenaurach, Germany / Size: 55,5 ha / Client: adidas group / I.c.w.: wgf-neurnberg Landschaftsarchitekten and WPW Ingenieure Planen und Beraten im Bauwesen / Competition Team: Frans Boots (technical landscape consultant), Chris Kabel (product designer), ARUP (engineering consultant, sustainability), Amsterdam Fashion Institute (branding development), IMGplus (3D, visualizations).
Voedseltuin Rotterdam (Food Garden Rotterdam) is a plot for urban agriculture located in one of the old abandoned harbor areas of Rotterdam. Volunteers work in the garden on a daily basis to produce food for people that can use a little bit of support in their daily lives. The Food garden has proven to be hugely successful. That’s why in the coming years it will evolve into a food park. By opening the garden to everybody, even more people can make use of the garden. By making the garden larger and greener, it can double as a natural area in a concrete environment. A number of improvements have already been made: the garden has been made accessible by new path, a new fruit garden will be planted, there will be new space for equipment and a connection to the water and electricity net. Voedseltuin Rotterdam will share water, electricity, waste and produce with the people that work or live right next to the garden.
Type of project: Landscape design / Design: 2015 / Constructed: 2015-2017 / Location: Rotterdam, The Netherlands / Size: 2 ha / Client: Voedseltuin Rotterdam
Park Poelzone is a 15,3 ha ecological corridor right through the greenhouse-filled Westland in the Netherlands. Main features are a long stretch of ecological waterlines, a 1.5 km winding bicycle route, 15 plots for new houses and an innovative setup of 2.2 ha of spawning ponds for fish. Here, young fish can grow up in the safety of water plants. The ponds double as a park and natural attraction for inhabitants and visitors. A boardwalk will take people to eye level with the water, making it possible for them to witness the natural spectacle of spawning fish each spring.
In the park four animal totems are located: artificial wooden structures stacked with separate housings for birds, insects, small mammals, bees and butterflies. The animal totems function as optional habitats for all fauna in the natural corridor, but also serve a role as landmarks. Next Architects was involved in the design of the Bat Bridge: a bridge that is made to be the ideal housing for four different species of bats. The bridge includes a bat bunker for winter shelter. Being an unique bridge, it is the ideal entrance for to Park Poelzone.
Type of project: Landscape design (bicycle- and walking route, new water, bridges, ecological connection) / Design: 2012 / Constructed: 2013-2015 (completed) / Location: Westland, The Netherlands / Size: 15,3 ha / Client: Municipality of Westland
Park Vijversburg is a historical public park with a growing art collection, located in the north of The Netherlands. The design is an expansion of the existing park. Central element in the design is the ‘star maze’, a remix of two historic park figures: the star shaped forest and the labyrinth. This structure consists of five meters tall hedges that functions as a room dividers to the several park areas. The central space of the star maze allows for an overview in all directions but at the same time doesn’t impose any direction. Each ending of the ‘Star Maze’ has got a function, such as a landscape balcony with a view over the nature reserve, a pier for canoe travelers in the recreational area, a window with a vista to the main park villa and a shed with rubber boots, to explore the marshland. The second park chamber, which can be flooded regularly, contains several hills with perennials in a field of pollard willows. The hills can be reached through a grid structure of small dikes. In cooperation with the gardener the park is designed so that it can be largely controlled mechanically. In collaboration with Piet Oudolf a detailed planting plan was made.
Type of project: Park design / Design: 2012 / Construction: 2012-2015 (completed) / Location: Tytsjerk, Friesland, The Netherlands / Size: 8 ha / Client: Stichting Op Toutenburg / I.c.w.: Deltavormgroep (technical design), Piet Oudolf (planting)
The research ‘Dutch Dikes’ marks the first time in history that all of the Dutch dikes have been described in one document, at a pivotal moment in the age of climate change. It presents an overview of our dikes in their current state, and offers a look towards the future. The dikes are fully mapped, the defense system is explained and the diversity is categorized. All dikes are brought together in a unique, systematic genealogy. This could be of interest to all those who work to keep deltas dry worldwide.
Type of project: Research/publication / Research: 2011-2014 / Publication: December 2014 (first edition), February 2015 (second edition) / Location: The Netherlands / Client: Self-commissioned / Publisher: NAI010 Uitgevers / Graphic design: Koehorst in ‘t Veld / Partners: Ministery of Infrastructure and the Environment, Deltares, Dienst Landelijk Gebied (DLG), Hoogheemraadschap Holland Noorderkwartier, Hoogheemraadschap Rijnland, Hoogwaterbeschermingsprogramma, Rijksdienst voor het Culturele Erfgoed.
Discontinued salt production makes the future existence of the Solana Ulcinj as a wildlife sanctuary uncertain, even though the area is of great value for countless species of birds that cross the Adriatic Sea on route of the Adriatic Flyway. Salt, nutrient rich, shallow water resulted in the massive presence of birds in the salina. In turn, birds resulted in the presence of birdwatchers. Birdwatchers resulted in jobs: the saline pyramid of species. To get the pyramid stable and working again, it is essential to restart the pumps to secure the future and guarantee a basic biodiversity of the Solana Ulcinj.
That’s not enough though. The salina could generate more colours, more wildlife. The way to sustain this is to create hyperdiversity: a maximized biodiversity by slight variations in salinity, shelter, nutrients, shading, etc. More variety means more biodiversity. More biodiversity means more visitors. The people of Ulcinj are welcome to benefit if they contribute to the hyperdiversity: an investment in the ecological variations in the framework of the Solana Ulcinj.
Type of project: masterplan/exhibition / Design: 2016 / Location: Solana Ulcinj, Montenegro / Size: 14,5 km2 / Client: Ministry of Sustainable Development and Tourism / Exhibited: The Venice Biennale 2016, Reporting from the front – The Montenegro Pavilion. Curated by Bart Lootsma and Katharina Weinberger
