It’s not every day that our college is visited by a world famous alum. But that was the case recently as landscape architect Raymond Jungles, BLAE ’81, came to DCP and shared his knowledge with our students, faculty and staff.
Raymond Jungles is the founder of the Miami-based landscape architecture firm, Raymond Jungles, Inc. (RJI), recognized for excellence in the design and implementation of public and private sector projects.
Before his lecture, Jungles participated in a Facebook Live session with Tina Gurucharri, landscape architecture chair. They conducted a sit-down interview that was very well received.
The topic of his lecture was Big Nature. It was about art and design, especially about design using native and ecoappropriate plants, creating urban natural systems and “big idea” landscapes.
“If all of us added a little native plants to our gardens, we would do so much to add to the natural flora and fauna,” Jungles said.
He also spoke about his design process: “When I design a garden, I figure out the circulation first. Circulation is key.”
Afterwards, DCP hosted a reception for Jungles where he was able to meet the guests that attended his lecture.
The following day, landscape architecture students were treated to time in the studio with Jungles. His presentation to the students was a before and after tour of a project in Nevis called Golden Rock Inn.
“Having Raymond Jungles back on campus for two lectures and in our studios critiquing student projects gave us all a unique opportunity to learn from a great master of tropical landscape design. We were impressed with his commitment to working with, and in some cases repairing, the local ecology. We are proud to count him as one of our alums,” Gurucharri said.
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