The Country Place Era in Virginia: The Residential Site Planning of Charles F. Gillette

Abstract

Recent research into the history of American landscape architecture has revealed a number of significant practitioners who had faded from historical memory yet merit attention on account of the excellence of their design work. One such individual is Charles E Gillette, who practiced in Richmond, Virginia, from 1913 until his death in 1969. Gillette apprenticed in the office of Warren Manning and practiced a design philosophy closely akin to that of Henry Hubbard and Theodora Kimball, as expressed in their classic, An Introduction to the Study of Landscape Design. Gillette was at his best as a site planner of private residences, which constituted about two-thirds of his 2,500 commissions. His residential work is characterized by a lucid spatial organization, a masterful use of plants, meticulous detailing, and a regionalism strongly influenced by the colonial architecture and landscape architecture of Virginia. In today's complex and pluralistic world of professional practice, we may well choose to operate with design principles somewhat different from Gillette's, but understanding the basic issues posed by his work can enrich and refine contemporary design.