One Life Spotlight: A Sense of Place

In the Fall 2017 edition of One Life magazine we learn how Island Planning Corp.transforms buildings and their neighborhoods, including the Miami Design District, with natures precious resource: trees. The company completed the landscape architecture for the Miami Design District, considered a complement to the neighborhoods many sculptural elements, including the Flys Eye Dome. Read the full article below, and then browse theentire issue.

A Sense of Placeby Siobhan Morrissey

A tree grows in Miami, occupying some of the most expensive square footage in the city. Despite extensive discussion over what to plant where in the evolving upscale Design District, the towering Pachira aquatica thrives in the courtyard of Herms, the iconic French fashion boutique located on Northeast 39th Street. That tree occupies about $12 million worth of retail space, says Nathan Browning, founder of the Miami Beach-based Island Planning Corp. And that tree costs about $100,000. Ironically, its called the money tree. The Chinese believe it brings good luck financially. Browning knows all about the Latin names of trees, along with their nicknames, places of origin and where they grow best. He also knows how to move mature, 50-foot trees from one corner of the planet to another. Since 2004, his company has provided master plans, landscape design and installations for some of the most exclusive properties in the world, including the Aman Venice, the Italian hotel where George Clooney celebrated his wedding to Amal Alamuddin in 2014. The odds did not favor an American winning the coveted role of landscaping the nearly 500-year-old palace, which features one of the few private gardens on Venices famed Grand Canal. But Browning persuaded the Italians that he was the man for the job. Armed with historical documents depicting the original gardensdocuments the reviewing committee had never before seenBrowning described how he would source native plants, such as cork trees, to create a modern masterpiece. While Browning says he always had an affinity for trees, he took a circuitous route to becoming one of the worlds leading landscape architects. An avid surfer and free-diver, he studied marine affairs and anthropology at the University of Miami. In college, he made extra cash by finding and installing large trees for local clients. When he was in his 20s, he took snowboarding trips to Jackson Hole, Wyoming. On one visit, a friend introduced him to Harrison Fords then-wife, screenwriter Melissa Mathison, which led to dinner with the actor and a job working in the Bahamas with Fords friend on a project headed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. Browning has remained in demand ever since. Before signing on to assist developer Craig Robins in realizing his dream for the Miami Design District, Browning worked for Cheval Blanc, the boutique hotel brand for international luxury goods conglomerate LVMH (Mot Hennessy Louis Vuitton). His projects ranged from a 100-acre resort in the Turks and Caicos or an entire island in the Adriatic Sea to private homes in Palm Beach and Miami. Robins really got to know Brownings genius when Robins hired Browning to landscape his residence, a project that included incorporating exotic edibles while making room for a basketball court and a prized sculpture by David Adjaye. Robins considers Browning uniquely qualified to realize his plans for Miami. He credits Brownings landscape design with uniting the disparate architectural and sculptural elements found in the various plazas and arcades comprising the Design District, including Buckminster Fullers bubble house and the blue glass building by Sou Fujimoto, who designed Londons Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2013." I think its an important component, Robins says. Whether youre looking at Buckminster Fullers Flys Eye Dome, Zaha Hadids Elastika, Sou Fujimotos building or Nathans landscaping plan, its all really powerful. Brownings appreciation for landscape design comes from his parents, who are accomplished designers in their own right. His father, Gordon, appreciates trees and native plants so much that when he finished landscaping the family home on Kumquat Avenue in Coconut Grove, he did the same for his neighbors homes. The neighborhoods appearance improved, and so did the property values. The concept that plants can add value to a propertyparticularly if they are compatible with the surrounding environmentwas not lost on Browning. This understanding is something he stresses in the Design District, where the tree canopy provides shade and a sense of luxury and permanence that complements the collection of premium brand stores such as Giorgio Armani, Bulgari, Cartier, Prada, Tiffany & Co., Valentino and Versace. Landscape has an inherent value through luxury and an aesthetic appeal that makes it appear as if the space is old and people have been coming there for a long time, he says. People will feel more comfortable through shade and ambiance. Trees are all the more important because the Design District is a land-locked property. Were in an urban area, Browning says. It should be as lush as possible." His overriding philosophy is simple: Everywhere we can plant a tree, he says, we should plant a tree.