Background
Gustafson was born and grew up in Yakima, Washington in 1951, her father was a heart surgeon.
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Kathryn Gustafson
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At the age of 18, Gustafson attended the University of Washington in Seattle, where she studied applied arts for about a year. She then moved to New York to attend the Fashion Institute of Technology. After graduating from the Fashion Institute, Gustafson moved to Paris to be a fashion designer.
Gustafson turned to landscape design.
She was educated at the Ecole Nationale Superieure du Paysage in Versailles, where she graduated in 1979.
Career
Her work includes the Gardens of the Imagination in Terrasson, France. A city square in Évry France. And the Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain in Hyde Park, London.
She is known for her ability to create sculptural forms, using earth, grass, stone and water.
The basis of her designs comes from her memories of past settings. The region around Yakima is a desert-like plateau surrounded by mountains.
Education Kathryn’s work is predominantly civic, institutional, and corporate, including parks, gardens and community spaces. Her award-winning projects include Westergasfabriek Culture Park in Amsterdam, Diana, Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain in London, Bay East and Gardens by the Bay in Singapore.
Recent projects include Valencia Parque Central, the Novartis Campus in Basel and Marina One in Singapore.
She has become known for her creations of sculptural forms. Her work has been compared with the designs of landscape architect Isamu Noguchi. Gustafson Guthrie Nichol was established in Seattle and founded by Gustafson, Jennifer Guthrie, and Shannon Nichol.
Gustafson Porter, founded by Gustafson and Neil Porter in 1997, is situated in London.
The firm receives international projects in the United Kingdom, Asia, Europe and Middle East.
