Courtesy of Topophila
At the start of a recent major backyard renovation for a family of five in Montecito, landscape designers Eric Arneson and Nahal Sobaty watched a small gray drone rise into the blue sky. They then guided the machine around the property, taking photos and videos of the 1-acre property and highlighting the project's many features, including a new pool, natural play area, stone retaining wall, and natural retaining walls. We have collected data to help you design. Planting. To fill in the infrastructure already in place, Arneson and Sobaty plan to utilize palm trees of varying heights and colors, along with native species such as catalina currants, hummingbird sage, and California coffee berries. did.
This was a complex job requiring the help of contractors, manufacturers and plant suppliers. His 3D representation of the terrain generated by drones optimized everyone's tasks. “This is a digital twin of the site that we have stored on our computers,” Sohbati explains. “And it helps collaborators communicate better with each other.”
This kind of thinking, along with a desire to experiment with new technology, is what first brought Arneson and Sovati together. The two met at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and connected on a personal and intellectual level through a passion for landscape architecture and a shared vision for the future of the industry. In 2018, shortly after her graduation, the two married, moved to Santa Barbara, and founded Topophyla, a landscape design studio focused on process innovation and sustainability. “We wanted to experience this field in our own way,” says Tehran-born Sobaty, who studied interior design in Dubai before moving to the West Coast. “And I wanted to try new technology and new materials.”
Hollywood housing projects are filled with native plants. A fence made of cedar and pressure-treated wood snakes along the property line like a spine.
Courtesy of Topophila
The general perception of gardens and garden-related work is old-fashioned. A romantic scene of people using their hands to toil with shovels, rakes, and lots of pruning fields. But like many industries, landscape design is evolving, and Topophylla carries a beacon for the future.
Arneson and Sobaty saw this potential while working on drone imaging technology at the Academy of Art. They turned to this tool as soon as they set up their studio and used the sophisticated machine to create his 3D renderings of the landscapes they were designing. These renderings are similar to images found in Google Earth, but are displayed at a higher resolution and include very specific data such as the height of existing trees, the different slopes of fields, and the ratio of vegetation to built-up areas. is packed. Information to help your team develop the least disruptive plan for excavation and planting. After a project is completed, drone surveys assist with evaluation and maintenance, creating a way for Topophyla to see if the design is successful from a holistic perspective, as well as providing a valuable resource for project updates and expansions. Masu.
“It's a great tool for landscape architects to understand the land from a new perspective than just satellite images and maps,” says Arneson, a California native with a background in art and botany. “We use it for every project.”
As a technology-focused studio, Topophyla naturally has a penchant for leveraging AI, and the company is raising awareness about it. In 2022, Sohbati and Arneson were asked by Open AI to test a beta version of his DALL-E. DALL-E generates photorealistic images based on descriptive text prompts and provides feedback to make them more useful to landscape designers. “He's a creative toddler now,” Arneson says. “We're thinking of things that adults wouldn't think of, like building a slide that goes through the trees on the playground. It's not practical yet, but it will happen someday.”
The knowledge that AI will inevitably permeate landscape design is both exciting and worrying for the couple. Arneson and Sovaty are acutely aware of the potential downsides, including a shrinking job market and the risk that unscrupulous professionals will create fake portfolios with images that look like the real thing. On the upside, it can be a time-saving tool that can quickly generate multiple ideas while handling mundane tasks like applying code.
Although it may seem analog, landscape design is being propelled into the future by technology.
Provided by Topophila
But while Topophyla's founders embrace new technology, their true passion is something more fundamental: creating authentic and sustainable green spaces. For them, sourcing locally is just as important in the world of landscaping as it is in the world of food. Their garden designs are filled with plants native to California and, when possible, include specimens that grow naturally in the immediate vicinity of the site. Popular choices include California lilac, pipevine, coyote shrub, sage, and seaside daisies. All of this provides food for a number of endangered species of butterflies, bees, and other insects. The company aims to replace traditional lawns with eco-friendly fescue grass, which is low maintenance and requires less water and mowing.
“The more people are exposed to the beauty of native plants and the complex interrelationships of birds, pollinators, and other life cycles, the more they will realize the aesthetic and ecological values they are missing,” Sovati he says. We believe that a traditional flat lawn has no features.
Arneson also views such hyperlocal sourcing on an ethical level, framing the use of native plants as a form of patriotism. “We're celebrating what's here,” he says. “Traditional landscapes are a holdover from Europe and don't apply to most parts of America. It's time for things to change.”
