Post by David Taylor

☀️ On swelteringly hot days like these, it becomes ever clearer that cities need their green spaces more than ever, to offer respite from the harshness of a climate on the move. But also, sometimes, to bring joy and a place for contemplation or connection, away from the busy hubbub of urban life. ☀️ 🌻 And that is certainly the case at the Queen Elizabeth II Garden in Regent’s Park, a commemoration of the late Royal Highness’ life in form and content, which I visited on one such ‘scorchio’ day with its chief designer, James Lord of HTA Design. 🌳 We spent a lovely hour or so chatting about the origins of the two-acre gardens created from a former store yard, and the broad mixture of people who have come and - so far - been positively struck by its pleasant plants, flowers, tower and water features. 🥗 This was for the latest in my ‘Five Minutes With’ series for NLA, in which Lord also described his inspiration for the garden, the stories behind its super-sustainable creation and operation, about designing for changing climates, figuratively linear and meandering paths, The Royal Parks as archetypal long-term thinking clients, and about some of the feedback he’s had in the 50 plus tours(I) he’s led - or gleaned from earwigging from the public. 😎 Thanks, James, for showing me around the place, and for providing another shady – and joyous - respite from the sun, something that will figure ever more in summers to come, no doubt. Now, where's that ice cream van? 👉 Read the interview here: https://lnkd.in/efjCh9PS Tate + Co Blakedown Landscapes FulkersBaileyRussell | Certified B Corp Tim O'Hare Associates LLP Ian Thackray