1. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Personal Information
Contact Information | [email protected] ; (510) 725 8619
Software Skills | AutoCAD, Adobe Creative Suite, SketchUp, Rhino, 3ds Max, hand drafting
Biography | My research on redress and reconciliatory processes engages with critical race theory, critical legal studies and cultural landscape studies to contextualize how nation-states incorporate “difficult histories” into the canon of national, provincial/state and municipal heritage in Canada and the United States.
As a practicing landscape architect, my areas of expertise include cultural landscape assessments and architectural documentation (Historic Resource Evaluation Technical Reports for CEQA, NEPA and Sec. 106 Compliance including HABS/HALS inventories, field drawing and photography.
Education Doctorate PhD Candidate, Architectural History | University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA Outside Field Specialization: Legal History and Ethnic Studies (September 2015 – present; expected 2021)
Post-Professional Degree Master of Architecture, Urban Design + Housing (M.Arch) | McGill University, Montreal, QC (September 2014 - August 2015)
Professional Degree Master of Landscape Architecture (MLA) | University of Guelph, Guelph, ON (September 2010 - April 2013)
Exchange: Courses in Urban Design + Conservation | University of Edinburgh, Scotland, UK (January - May 2012)
Undergraduate Degree Bachelor of Arts and Science + Art History (B.Arts Sc.) | McMaster University, Hamilton, ON (September 2005 - April 2009)
Additional (Fieldwork Courses)
Field School in Built Heritage and Cultural Landscapes | Universite Laval Ecole d'architecture, Gaspe, QC (3 weeks; May 2015)
Architecture Summer School | Rotterdamse Academie van Bouwkunst, Rotterdam, Netherlands (3 weeks; July 2012)
Study Abroad: Drawing + Painting | Sheridan College in Florence, Italy (5 weeks; April - May 2009)
2. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Awards and Honors
Doctoral Study | University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA ¯ Social Sci. and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) Doctoral Fellowship, 2019-2021 ¯ International Council for Canadian Studies Graduate Award, 2018 ¯ Bancroft Library Summer Study Award, Summer 2018 ¯ Graduate Student Assessment Fellow Grant, American Cultures Engaged Scholarship, 2018 ¯ Center for Race and Gender Graduate Research Grant, 2017- 18 ¯ Townsend Art of Writing Course Development Grant, The Art of Writing, 2017 ¯ Diversity Scholarship Program, National Trust for Historic Preservation, 2017 ¯ Joan Draper Architectural Research Fund, 2017-18 ¯ Berkeley Empirical Legal Studies (BELS) Fellowship, 2017-18 ¯ Edward Hildebrand Graduate Fellowship in Canadian Studies, 2017 ¯ College of Environmental Design Diversity Platform Award, 2016-17 ¯ Graduate Division Conference Travel Grant, UC Berkeley. 2015, 2016 ¯ Graduate Student Researcher, Center for Race and Gender, 2015-2017 ¯ University of California Regents Graduate Fellowship, UC Berkeley. 2015-2021
Post-Professional Study | McGill University, Montreal, QC ¯ Norbert Schoenauer and David Farley Fellowship in Architecture. 2015 ¯ Graduate Excellence Fellowships, McGill University. 2014
Design Award | City of Toronto – Urban Design and City Planning, Toronto, ON ¯ Urban Design Awards 2013 - Student Thesis (Nomination - Finalist). 2013
Conference Travel and Presentation Grants | Assorted ¯ Ninth International Design Principles and Practices Conference - Graduate Scholar Award to attend and present in Chicago. 2015 ¯ Alliance for Historic Landscape Preservation Conference - North American Student Award to attend and present in Lynchburg, Virginia. 2013
Professional Study – Design and Research Awards | University of Guelph, Guelph, ON ¯ Ontario Agricultural College – School of Environmental Design Graduate Awards. 2010 -2013 ¯ FacebookWhatsAppTwitterLinkedInEmailOntario International Education Opportunity Scholarship (OIEOS) ¯ Landscape Architecture Canada Foundation (LACF) - Student Research Award 2011 ¯ Michael Smith Foreign Study Supplement, SSHRC. 2011 ¯ Ontario Graduate Scholarship (OGS) – declined, 2010 ¯ Joseph-Armand Bombardier Canada Graduate Scholarship, Social Science and Humanities ¯ of Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). 2010 -2013
Undergraduate Study | McMaster University, Hamilton, ON − McMaster University Entrance Award. 2005-2007
Non-Academic | Town of Oakville, Oakville, ON − Lieutenant Governor's Community Volunteer Award for Students. 2005
3. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Professional Experience - Landscape Architecture + Urban Design (Private Practice)
OALA Associate/Landscape Architectural Intern | Quinn Design Associates Inc., Toronto, ON (full-time, June 2013 - June 2014, 1 year) - Prepared drawing sets including layout, grading, planting plans and construction details in AutoCAD for large scale hospital facilities/health and wellness centers, retail/streetscapes and hotel/ resort complexes in the Greater Toronto Area and the Middle East - Rendered site plans, diagramming and illustrative perspectives in both, 2D and 3D modelling programs - Prepared cost estimates for hardscapes and softscapes, including native and drought resistant planting - Actively involved in site approvals processes with local municipalities, conservation authorities and heritage planning professionals - Worked toward Ontario Association of Landscape Architects (OALA) and Canadian Association of Landscape Architects (CSLA) licensure through enrollment in the Professional Development Program and Landscape Architect Registration Exams (LARE) - Select built and conceptual projects include: HEALTH CARE: Peel Memorial Hospital (Brampton, ON), ErinOaks Kids Rehabilitation Center (Oakville, Mississauga and Brampton, ON), St. Michael’s Hospital (Toronto), Milton District Hospital (Milton, ON) STREETSCAPE/RETAIL: Site Planning at Scarborough Town Center (Scarborough, ON), Sherway Gardens (Toronto, ON), Yorkdale Mall (Toronto, ON) and seasonal plantings at Square One Mall (Mississauga, ON) HOTEL/RESORT: Conceptual renderings Intercontinental Hotel (Oman, Muscat) HERITAGE: Waterloo Maison Hotel (Waterloo)
OALA Associate/Junior Landscape Architectural Intern | Forrec Ltd. Toronto, ON (full-time, July -December 2012, 5 months) - Involved in early conceptual stages of design for international entertainment and leisure projects - Prepared drawing sets including conceptual layout, grading, planting plans and construction details in AutoCAD for large scale master planned theme park and water park communities and retail establishments in Asia, the Middle East and Europe - Rendered site plans, diagramming and illustrative perspectives in both, 2D and 3D modelling programs - Co-ordinated with internal departments and performed on teams consisting of a diverse range of design professions including illustrators, animators, graphic designers, interior designers, architects and landscape architects and master planners - Select projects include: THEME PARKS: Warner Brothers Theme Park – Superheroes and Villains (Abu Dhabi), Sweetlandt Theme Park Residential Community (China), Xuzhou (China), Universal Moscow (Russia) and Wanda Heifei (China). MASTERPLANNING: Eutopia Luxury Resort (Oman), New North City (China)
4. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Professional Experience - Heritage Landscape Conservation (Government/ Non–Profit Organizations)
NCPE Cultural Landscapes Intern | National Parks Service, Pacific West and Alaska Region (full-time, 3 months, May – August 2017) - Developed a Cultural Landscape Inventory (CLI) for Sitka National Historical Park in Sitka, Alaska - CLI was a comprehensive inventory of all culturally and historically significant features within the park as well as landscape's location, historical development, existing conditions, and management information - Participated in HALS/HABS/HAER (historic documentation) workshops to complete assignment according to specified standards - Prepared an annotated bibliography of relevant sources using NPS’ Integrated Resource
Management Application (IRMA) - Participated in a 3 week on site reconnaissance of the existing landscape at Sitka document the park’s fort and battlefield site - Attended tribal council meetings with the Sitka Tribe of Alaska (STA) - Completed archival research at National Park Service libraries in Juneau and in Sitka and at research libraries and archives in Berkeley - Cultural landscape treatments specified and previous treatments on the site evaluated - The completed inventory will inform a future Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) and this inventory is stored in the national CLI database in Washington, DC, in regional databases at the Olmsted Center and is accessible online.
Heritage Research Assistant | CyArk, Oakland (part-time, 3 months, May – August 2017) - Developed Background Brief synopsis to assist expedition leaders, drone operators and photographers with onsite documentation and virtual reality capture of heritage sites - Completed research and compiled summaries of UNESCO reports, national preservation guidelines and heritage management reports for sites as diverse as Chavin de Huantar (Peru),
portions of the Great Wall of China (China), Tower of London (UK), Rapa Nui (Chile), Sydney Opera House (Australia), Temples of Bagan (Myanmar) and Fort York (Toronto, Canada) - Researched intellectual property licenses and drone operation laws in various countries - Assisted with developing archival standards for a diverse range of heritage documentation (photogrammetry data, LiDAR, drone footage etc.) and adapting HABS/HALS/HAER transmittal standards
US/ICOMOS Intern | National Trust for Historic Preservation, Washington, D.C. (full-time, 3 months, May – August 2016) - Attended a two week US/ ICOMOS (international Council on Monuments and Sites) training session in Washington, D.C - Completed on-site fieldwork and architectural documentation standards for a range of properties (architect’s homes, artist studios, presidential homes and plantation sites) in the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s (NTHP) portfolio
5. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
- Attended summer orientations and training sessions with National Park Service Interns including heritage documentation training (HABS, HALS, HAER – Historic American Building, Landscape, Engineering Survey) - Travelled throughout Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, DC, Virginia to NTHP properties for onsite fieldwork with an architectural intern and structural engineer - Major projects include: CHESTERWOOD, MA – documented existing conditions of historic home bathrooms and developed ADA accessible drawings for these spaces. Also produced measured drawing set for Meadowlark Studio, an adjoining workspace for renowned sculptor Daniel Chester French. Submitted drawing set to the National Park Service HABS Leister B. Holland Heritage Documentation 2016 Prize WOODLAWN, VA – assisted Collections Manager with conducting an inventory of basement items. Also developed a new electrical plan for the basement of the plantation house. Assisted with researching and compiling slave narratives through research at local archives in Fairfax County for an upcoming exhibition and impending site archaeology. Prepared an inventory of native plants and developed landscape conservation plans with the Garden Club of Virginia to introduce more drought resistant native species into planting design for NTHP plantation properties
Job Shadowee (ACO Next Gen) | Parks Canada, Heritage Conservation and Commemoration Directorate, Gatineau and Culture Policy Unit, Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Sport, Toronto (February 2015; March 2013) - Selected by the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario NextGen Young Professionals group to participate in two job shadow opportunities in heritage conservation - Attended meetings and was introduced to Canadian legislation at the provincial and national level at Parks Canada and Ontario’s Ministry of Culture
Archaeology Fieldwork Assistant, Piñtia | Universidad de Valladolid, Padilla de Duero, Spain (full-time, June 2012, 1 month) - Assisted with ongoing excavations of a Vaccean necropolis; Vacceans were an Iron Age people with Celtic links who settled in north-central Spain around 5th century BCE - Fieldwork involved onsite excavation, surveying as well as artifact documentation and mapping with senior archaeologists, support staff and a team of 12 students - Handled site surveying equipment and archaeological tools; attended seminars and workshops on osteology, archaeological drawing, Vaccean pottery and conservation of archaeological objects and human remains -
Research Intern, Gardens and Designed Landscapes | National Trust for Scotland, Edinburgh, UK (part-time, January - May 2012, 5 months) - Conducted archival research on Crathes Castle, Aberdeenshire - Responsible for developing a conservation treatment timeline and liaising with NTS librarians, archivists, property managers and site staff - Attended NTS historic conservation workshops in material conservation and landscape planning as well as participated in the ‘Working Holiday’ program in Aberdeenshire
6. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Professional Experience – University Teaching and Research
Graduate Student Instructor | UC Berkeley, CA ENVDES R3B Energy, Sustainability and Society. Reading and Comprehension. Spring 2018 ARCH 179 Architectural Writing: ‘Writing on the Walls,’ Fall 2017 HISTART187A Race and Representation in the US, Fall 2016
Grader | UC Berkeley, CA ARCH 170B An Historical Survey of Architecture and Urbanism, Spring 2017
Graduate Student Researcher | UC Berkeley, CA Center for Race and Gender (Fall 2015 – Spring 2017)
Getting into Graduate School (GiGS) Mentor | UC Berkeley, CA (3 undergraduate students, Fall 2016 – Spring 2017)
Invigilator | McGill University, QC
(Final examinations, l 2014- 2015)
Teaching Assistant, Landscape Architecture | University of Guelph, ON (3 courses taught at undergraduate level, Design Studios and Undergraduate Thesis, 2011-13)
Teaching Assistant, Liberal Studies | OCADU, Toronto, ON (1 course taught at undergraduate level, The Science of Colour, 2010)
Teaching Assistant, Art History | McMaster University, Hamilton, ON (2 courses taught at undergraduate level, Introduction to Art History, 2008-09)
Professional Experience - Curriculum Development + Teaching (Ages 8 -13)
Curriculum Developer | San Francisco Heritage, San Francisco, CA (part-time, May 2017)
Educator and Docent | Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archives (BAMPFA) Child and Youth Education, Berkeley, CA (part time/occasional, Jan – May 2017)
Instructor, Design Matters Summer Camps | OCADU / Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, ON (full-time, August 2013, 2 weeks ; full time, July-August 2014, 2 months; full time, July 2015, 1 month)
Studio Assistant | 4 Cats Art Studio, Montreal, QC (part-time/occasional, Jan – April 2015)
After School Program Facilitator | Westmount Park School, Commission Scholaire English- Montreal, (part-time/occasional, January 2015 - March 2015)
Instructor, Child and Youth Programs | Art Gallery of Ontario, Toronto, ON (weekend part-time, September 2013 - August 2014, 1 year)
7. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Professional Experience Cont. - Curriculum Development + Teaching (Ages 8 -13)
Director, Junior. Architecture, Interior Design, Eco Explorers Camps | Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, ON (full-time, July- August 2010 + 2012, 2 months)
Outdoor Educator: Waterfront Revitalization, School Visits | Harbourfront Centre, Toronto, (part-time, May-June 2011, 2 months)
Garden Interpreter and Junior Gardener Instructor | Royal Botanical Gardens, Burlington, (full-time, May - September 2008, 4 months; July - September 2009, 2 months)
Docent (Tour Guide to School Groups) | Art Gallery of Hamilton, Hamilton, ON (part time, 2008-2009, 1 year)
Professional Experience - Museum/ Gallery + Curatorial Experience
Installation Artist | Steel Rails, City of Kitchener Waterloo, ON (2015)
Curator, Undergraduate Degree Show | University of Guelph, Landscape Architecture, The Bullring (2013)
Co-Curator, Graduate Degree Show | University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh College of Art (2012)
Curator, Jr. Architects | Harbourfront Centre, Architecture Gallery, Toronto (July-Aug 2011) Curatorial + Graphic Design Intern | Design Exchange, Toronto, ON (full-time, January -March 2010, 3 months)
Public Relations + Graphic Design Intern | Museum for Contemporary Canadian Art, Toronto,
ON (full-time, September - December 2009, 3 months)
Research + Acquisitions Intern | McMaster Museum of Art, Hamilton, ON (part-time, 2007-2008, 1 year)
Exhibition Assistant, Earth Art | Royal Botanical Gardens, Burlington (Summer 2008)
Exhibitor, OPS Conserves- Juried Show | John B. Aird Gallery, Toronto (Aug 2008)
Co-Curator, Global Citizenship Conference | McMaster University, Hamilton (2007, 2008)
8. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Publications
Book Chapters | Valadares, D. "Dispossessing the Wilderness: Environmental Peace building and Reconciliation in Canada’s National Parks" in Jeroen Rodenberg and Pieter Wagenaar eds. Cultural Contestation: Heritage, Identity and the Role of Government. Palgrave Macmillan. 2018
Government Reports | Cultural Landscape Inventory of Sitka National Historical Park – Fort and Battlefield Site (2017). Washington, DC National Park Service Archives. 2017
Cultural Landscapes of Canada and Scotland: A Comparative Study of Cross-Cultural Heritage Conservation Policies. 2012. url: http://www.lacf.ca/system/files/desiree_valadares_lacf_final_report_2012.pdf
Crathes Castle Timeline. National Trust for Scotland Archives, Edinburgh and Aberdeenshire, UK. 2012 url: http://www.lacf.ca/system/files/crathes_castle_final.pdf
Published Articles | The Camp Pilgrimage: An Act of Spatial Agency. The Funambulist. Summer 2017 Carceral Classrooms: Indian Residential Schools in Canada. The Funambulist. Spring 2016 Dispossessing the Wilderness. Onsite Review. Fall 2015 Youth Engagement and City Building. Ground Magazine. Fall 2014 Adaptive Reuse: The Dundas Eco Park Plan. Architectural Conservancy of Ontario. ACORN
Magazine. Spring 2014 Ontario Place: A Place to Stand? A Place to Grow? A Biographical Approach to Landscape Research.
Heritage & Us. Conserve it for the Future (ISSN 2319-1201). Year 2, Issue 3. 2013 | url: http://heritageconservators.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Heritage-and-Us-Year-2-Issue-3- September-2013.pdf
Newsletter Editor | Faultlines, Center for Race and Gender, UC Berkeley (Fall 2015, Spring 2016, Fall 2016, Spring 2017 – 4 issues) url: http://crg.berkeley.edu/category/semester-publication/faultlines
Master's Theses (e-thesis) | Urban Design and Housing M.Arch Symbolic Restitution, Material Reparations and the Politics of Reconciliation: Managing the Extant Vernacular Architecture and Cultural Landscapes of Expropriated Communities in Forillon National Park, Québec (2015) | url: https://ucberkeley.academia.edu/DesireeValadares
Landscape Architecture MLA Ontario Place: A Place to Stand? A Place to Grow? A Biographical Approach to Landscape Research (2013)
| url: https://atrium.lib.uoguelph.ca/xmlui/handle/10214/6598
9. DESIRÉE VALADARES landscape architect | landscape historian
Conferences + Presentations
In-Person Presentations
2017 - Pedagogies of Dissent | American Studies Association, Chicago November 2017 -Transcultural Encounters: Understanding Humans in Change | Panel “Session 5” | University of Oulu, Oulu Finland June 2017 - Not at Home: Migration, Pilgrimage and Displacement in Art, Design and Visual Culture | Panel “Displacement and Memory” Berkeley / Stanford Symposium, SFMoMA, San Francisco, April 2017 - Making Home in Wounded Spaces: Design, Memory and the Spatial | Panel “Appropriations of Spaces Wounded by History” | Parsons School of Design, New York, March 2017 - States of Apology: The Politics of Commemoration | Center for Race and Gender, UC Berkeley, February 2017
2016 - International Federation of Landscape Architects | Panel “Landscape Justice” | Panama City,
Panama, October 2016 - Places of Amnesia - Panelist (via Skype) | University of Cambridge, Cambridge, March 2016
2015 -Institute for the Study of Human Rights –Panelist | Columbia University. New York, Dec 2015
-Heritage Conservation Symposium - Presenter | Carleton University. Ottawa, March 2015 -9th International Design Principles and Practices- Graduate Scholar | Chicago Mar 2015
2013 -Alliance for Historic Landscape Preservation- Presenter | Lynchburg, Virginia, March 2013 -Ontario Agricultural College Symposium -Panelist | University of Guelph, February 2013
2012 -Heritage Canada Foundation -Pecha Kucha | National Trust Conference. Montreal, Oct 2012
Poster / Design Panel Presentations
2014 - IFLA (International Federation of Landscape Architects) - Poster | Buenos Aires, Argentina. June 2014 - New Frontiers Graduate History Conference - Poster | York University. Toronto, Feb 2014
2013 - ECLAS (European Council of Landscape Architectural Schools) | Annual Conference. Hamburg, September 2013 -Canadian Association of Geographers - Poster | Annual Conference. St. Johns, New Foundland, August 2013 -Heritage Conservation Symposium - Design Project Panels | Carleton University. Ottawa, March 2013