Degree: Bachelors of Landscape Architecture From Iowa State University
Year Graduated from College: 2017
Internships: Snyder and Associates, Iowa Valley Habitat for Humanity, Iowa State University Facilities Planning and Management
Hometown Area: Iowa City, Iowa
Awards/Accomplishments: Central States American Society of Landscape Architects Award of Merit Project Designed/Built 2017
Family / Interests / Hobbies: I spend time enjoying the outdoors with my daughter, wife, family and friends as much as possible; these activities include fly fishing to hiking, wakeboarding and watersports, camping and, of course, landscaping and gardening.
My favorite thing about Landscaping / Designing / Outdoors: The biggest enjoyment is always bringing client’s ideas and concepts to life on paper and in real life. Designing with living, breathing, growing objects presents challenges to every site. This is always exciting for me to watch these landscapes grow and evolve.
My Inspiration: I take inspiration from clients I work with to mix the styles that they have, blending them with my own, which are ever evolving with the new technologies and trends in the world today.
My favorite landscape style: I have always loved the New American Garden Style, with its big sweeping movements and use of mass plantings; it pares well with very simple construction methods that use focus on the materials used in its raw form. This style is simple, but bold, makes statements with color, texture, and contrast, and has seasonal interest year round.
Inspirational Quotes:
“Our ability to perceive quality in nature begins, as in art, with the pretty. It expands through successive stages of the beautiful to values as yet uncaptured by language.”
– Aldo Leopold
Valuable design lesson: Growing up I was always looking to find ways to solve problems, no matter how unconventional of an approach it may be. Even when others would have thrown in the towel, I still strive to find a solution – even when it might seem like an impossible task.
My ideal outdoor space:
I have always enjoyed natural and rural settings. Having grown up around a family farm in Eastern Iowa, large open frame timber structures with stone and metal accents always catch my eye, and native plantings with moving/ flowing water have always seemed so simple and elegant to me.
Email: AFrits@RosehillGardens.com
