The Cultural Landscape Foundation® Pioneers of American Landscape Design® ___________________________________ NICHOLAS QUENNELL ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT ___________________________________ Interviews Conducted October 7-9, 2013 By Charles A. Birnbaum, FASLA, FAAR © 2015 The Cultural Landscape Foundation, all rights reserved. May not be used or reproduced without permission. The Cultural Landscape Foundation® Pioneers of American Landscape Design® Oral History Series: Nicholas Quennell Interview Transcript Contents PRELUDE ........................................................................................................ 6 BIOGRAPHY .................................................................................................... 6 Childhood ..................................................................................................................... 6 Growing Up in England ....................................................................................................... 6 The War Years ................................................................................................................. 6 Cleeve Hill ........................................................................................................................ 7 Returning to London ....................................................................................................... 8 Devon .............................................................................................................................. 9 Hampstead Heath ........................................................................................................... 9 Family ............................................................................................................................ 10 The Influence of Acting ................................................................................................. 11 Formative Education ................................................................................................... 12 An Early Interest in Art ..................................................................................................... 12 Jingo, a Comic Book ...................................................................................................... 12 Printing Press ................................................................................................................ 13 Early Travels ..................................................................................................................... 13 School in London .............................................................................................................. 14 Junior School Memories ................................................................................................ 14 The Hymns ..................................................................................................................... 14 Choosing Art Sixth Form ................................................................................................ 16 Early Architectural Influences ....................................................................................... 16 Architectural Beginnings ............................................................................................. 17 The Architectural Association .......................................................................................... 17 Modernism .................................................................................................................... 17 Working for Manasseh .................................................................................................. 19 Highgate ........................................................................................................................ 19 Early Work on Public Projects ....................................................................................... 20 Early Experiences in America ....................................................................................... 21 Coming to America ........................................................................................................... 21 New York City ................................................................................................................ 21 Working in Cambridge ...................................................................................................... 22 Sandy Daley ................................................................................................................... 23 San Francisco in the 1960s ............................................................................................... 24 Working for Lawrence Halprin ......................................................................................... 25 Ghirardelli Square ......................................................................................................... 26 Halprin’s Partners ......................................................................................................... 29 Richard Reynolds ........................................................................................................... 30 Reclaiming Cities ........................................................................................................... 31 1960s Social Atmosphere .............................................................................................. 31 Living in the Bay Area.................................................................................................... 32 © 2015 The Cultural Landscape Foundation, all rights reserved. May not be used or reproduced without permission. 2 The Cultural Landscape Foundation® Pioneers of American Landscape Design® Oral History Series: Nicholas Quennell Interview Transcript The Pop Art Movement ................................................................................................. 33 New York in the 1960s ..................................................................................................... 35 Vollmer Associates ........................................................................................................ 35 Chelsea Hotel ................................................................................................................ 36 Becoming a Landscape Architect ................................................................................. 37 Harvard Graduate School of Design ................................................................................. 37 Remembering Academic Influencers and Critics ........................................................... 38 Remembering Classmates ............................................................................................. 40 The Ark Project .............................................................................................................. 40 1960s Campus Atmosphere .......................................................................................... 41 Professional Practice ................................................................................................... 42 An Early Partnership ......................................................................................................... 42 Nicholas Quennell ............................................................................................................ 42 Hanging a Shingle ......................................................................................................... 42 Landscape Architecture in the 1970s ............................................................................ 43 Licensure ....................................................................................................................... 44 Passing the Licensing Exam........................................................................................... 45 On Being Dual Licensed ................................................................................................. 45 Office Space ................................................................................................................... 46 Quennell Rothschild & Partners ....................................................................................... 47 Current Role at Quennell Rothschild ............................................................................. 47 Future of Quennell Rothschild ....................................................................................... 49 Life outside the Office ................................................................................................. 50 Public Engagement ........................................................................................................... 50 The Art Commission ...................................................................................................... 50 East River 60th Street Pavilion ....................................................................................... 51 Municipal Art Society .................................................................................................... 53 Teaching ........................................................................................................................... 55 Marriage ........................................................................................................................... 56 Grace Tankersley .............................................................................................................. 57 Remembering