Margaret Ann HerndonMLA completed Spring, 2010

Virginia Polytechnic and State UniversityWashington Alexandria Architecture Center

Topographic Timeline: An original idea that uses juxtaposed maps to graphically reveal personal landscape histories. The x-axis (time) is measured in years and the y-axis (elevation) is measured in feet.

A Secret Garden in Old TownWinner: Outstanding Landscape

Washington Spaces MagazineFall 2008

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granite block patio

ipe landingcantilevered pergola

tsukabai fountain

recycled concrete tile walk

ipe storage boxesFagus sylvatica ‘Asplenifolia’

Acer palmatum ‘Sango kaku’Prunus laurocerasus ‘Schipkaensis’

“The parents of two active girls wanted to create a multi-tasking garden in their tiny Old Town Alexandria backyard that would host rugged soccer practices as well as elegant dinner parties. Meg Herndon complied with a blend of plantings and hardscaping. The custom built pergola acts as a transition from the walkway to the garden and also forms a contemporary proscenium over a stage of ipe wood. In addition to LED lights that bathe the area at night, the owners went green with recycled cement tiles which are integrated into the garden walk. (Washington Spaces Magazine. Early spring 2009, p.75)”

Figure 2. View from walkway towards wall at western edge of property

Figure 1. Concept Plan

Figure 3. Northeast view from ipe “stage” Figure 4. Axon illustrating pergola, stage with lights, and storage boxes/seating

cantilevered pergola

ipe storage boxes

Resilient ImprovisationParking lot explorations of the human relationship with time.

Center City Parking in Chinatown, Washington DC is an 11 acre parking lot and a temporary event space. In the past year it has hosted a tennis tournament, a Chili Cook-off, a Walk for Cancer wellness village, and a trapeze school. This project examines the role of design at the intersection of the durable and the instantaneous. Is it possible to design armature that is rigid enough to provide traditional park-like hierarchical spaces while being flexible enough to accommodate multiple uses and rotating events?

Figure 1. Four parking configurations are laid out across the site based on two underlying grids. Two are facing N-S and two are at a 45* angle. Each configuration is painted a different color. Car parking is oriented based on the specific event and cars themselves gather to define event space.

Figure 2. View looking west from entrance. Site is graded to direct water into holding tanks at its southern and eastern edges.

Figure 2. Trees are planted where four colors converge.

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Figure 3. Events are assigned a specific parking color. During the event that color is the only one that is “read” by people parking their cars.

Figure 4. The armature of painted lines, trees, asphalt, cars, snack trucks (a), and porta-johns (b), combine with people and events to form a constantly changing mosaic that is both temporary and enduring.

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Herndon 6

Daingerfield Island:Del Ray and the Potomac

Scale 1:50

Ramp at 10% Slope

Pedestrian Suspension Bridge Scale 1/8”=1’-0”

GW Parkway Southbound

Wetland Well

Overlook to MonumentsLinear park across Daingerfield Island

MLA Studio projectSpring 2009

Figure1. A suspension bridge over the existing north-south travel lanes and uneven terrain allows universal access from Del Ray and Rte. 1 to the Potomac river.

Figure2. The design intent for this project was to provide visitors with cultural and environmental perspectives on place and time. Circular clearings across the park house forms from past land uses including freight (a), agriculture (b), and dredging (c). Water rills and pools along the path connect visitors with tidal rhythms (see Figures 3 and 4 below).

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Figure 3. Walking path and steps in a clearing overlook a rill and pool.

Figure 4. Clearing, pool, and walking path in section. Pool reveals tidal ebb and flow. Figure 6.

Figure 7. Fig. 5: The historic land use of dredging along the river is reinterpreted using pools and mounds.Fig. 6: Agricultural heritage in the coastal plain is shown using ridges and furrows.Fig. 7: Freight (at a slightly higher elevation) is revealed using containers and tobacco barrels.

Redevelopment proposal: Mcmillan slow sand

filtration plantMLA Studio project

Fall 2008The site of the filtration plant is slated for

redevelopment. This project illustrates a proposal to preserve the historic and environmental

character of the place while providing for the needs of a new human community.

Figure 1. The sand filtration plant is composed of a grid of columns underground which supported a flat sod roof and housed a bed of sand which cleaned Potomac River water for the city at the turn of the century. The proposal begins by returning the site to its former topographic condition by removing much of the underground structure and exposing the columns at varying heights.

Section a-b. The geometry of the columns inform construction for rowhouses, garages, streets and alleys. Irrigation pipes, a rain tank box, and bio-swales are the “new” filtration plants.

Section c-d. Farther north, the columns and arches remain intact and create a unique double-decker urban park.

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“Summer House”Macarthur Boulevard Washington, DC

Fall 2007

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By turning the lawn into a positive shape and using a self-defined, strong, curving bed line, the landscape embraces and helps to situate multiple architectural forms. A relatively simple mix of Crape Myrtle, Boxwood, Oakleaf Hydrangea, Roses, Miscanthus, Liatris, Russian Sage, and Gaura provide classic color and texture throughout the summer months.

Where the Wild Things Are

Children’s Garden and Wildlife HabitatWashington, DC

Figure1. Parents of three boys in NW Washington requested an imaginative play place, vegetable garden, and native plantings. The resulting concept, inspired by the book by Maurice Sendak, creates space for exploration and discovery by children, birds, and insects.

Figure 2. A serpentine pergola and grape arbor winds its way over boulders, a fire pit and patio and down across constructed play mounds

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Water Bubbler

Fieldstone Steppers

Potting Area

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Additional Residential Designs

Fielder Residence Manassas, Va

Bozella-Hardy ResidenceMclean, Va

Townhouse in Mount PleasantWashington, DC

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Layers: Modern (Capitol Hill Suites) Field Crops (Daniel Carrol) Forest (Beech/Oak/Sassafrass) Devonian (90th Contour)

Layers: Modern (Madison Building) City Beautiful (Frame Dwelling) Field Crops (Daniel Carrol) Devonian (90th Contour)

J st. proposal:The crest of Capitol Hill

MLA Studio projectSpring 2007

Figure 1. Early topographic map of Washington with period overlays.

Figure 2. The 91st. topo line runs through multiple periods. As it goes, it transforms each period to the one directly preceding it.

Figure 3. Section view of two transformed areas

Figure 4. J st. is 10’ wide and tall and intersects with buildings, streets, and undisturbed lands.

Modern Building (1910-Present)

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Layers Made Visible: Lightness in a Narrative Landscape

Daniel Carrol

William Young

Widow Wheeler

Abraham Young

Oak, Beech, Sassafrass Species Throughout

J Street: Crest of Capitol Hill

Topography, Fluvium, Equisetum Species

Forest to Devonian

City Beautiful to Field Modern to Previous Layer

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Unimproved Road

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Layers: Modern (Capitol Hill Suites) Field Crops (Daniel Carrol) Forest (Beech/Oak/Sassafrass) Devonian (90th Contour)

Layers: Modern (Madison Building) City Beautiful (Frame Dwelling) Field Crops (Daniel Carrol) Devonian (90th Contour)