Lee Altman

SCAPE is a design-driven landscape architecture and urban design studio based in New York, New Orleans, and San Francisco. We believe landscape architecture can enable positive change in communities through the creation of regenerative living infrastructure and public landscapes. We work to integrate natural cycles and systems into environments across all scales, from the urban pocket-park to the regional ecological plan. We do this through diverse forms of landscape architecture – built landscapes, planning frameworks, research, books, and installations – with the ultimate goal of connecting people to their immediate environment and creating dynamic and adaptive landscapes of the future. Our staff is experienced in landscape architecture, architecture, urban design, and planning, and we integrate these skillsets to practice design as interpreters and synthetic thinkers. We lead and work with teams of engineers and architects on complex projects, from stormwater streetscapes to large public pedestrian infrastructure, translating technical expertise into legible and engaging public space. We also believe in working with communities and stakeholders to translate complex visions into realizable actions. We work with clients to ensure that design concept remains intact through the process of building landscapes. To achieve solid, high-performance public urban landscapes, we combine new technologies with tried and true construction techniques. We aim to create public landscapes of lasting significance, reconnecting neighborhood infrastructure and habitats for generations to come. Our work and collaborations have led to several national awards, including the Buckminster Fuller Challenge Winner, two national American Society of Landscape Architects awards, and several NY American Society of Landscape Architects Awards. In 2017, founder and principal Kate Orff was named a MacArthur Foundation Fellow, and in 2019 SCAPE was awarded the Cooper Hewitt National Design Award.