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This Spring, we’re proud to share two exciting promotions within the studio, beginning with Alma Du Solier’s appointment as Partner. Alma has been a driving force at HOOD, bringing clarity, care, and conviction to our work and office. As she steps into this new role, we’re excited to see the vision she will continue to shape within the studio and beyond.

Our latest edition of Under the Hood reflects theme of Vision. In looking at where we’re headed, Alma shared her vision for the NVIDIA campus in Santa Clara and the inherent power of subtlety. She envisioned a shifting material palette, from cool grays in shade to warmer tones in sun, which lead to a nuanced and experiential landscape.

Stay tuned for more on our second promotion!

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt and Jason O’Rear

This Spring, we’re proud to share two exciting promotions within the studio, beginning with Alma Du Solier’s appointment as Partner. Alma has been a driving force at HOOD, bringing clarity, care, and conviction to our work and office. As she steps into this new role, we’re excited to see the vision she will continue to shape within the studio and beyond.

Our latest edition of Under the Hood reflects theme of Vision. In looking at where we’re headed, Alma shared her vision for the NVIDIA campus in Santa Clara and the inherent power of subtlety. She envisioned a shifting material palette, from cool grays in shade to warmer tones in sun, which lead to a nuanced and experiential landscape.

Stay tuned for more on our second promotion!

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt and Jason O’Rear

This Spring, we’re proud to share two exciting promotions within the studio, beginning with Alma Du Solier’s appointment as Partner. Alma has been a driving force at HOOD, bringing clarity, care, and conviction to our work and office. As she steps into this new role, we’re excited to see the vision she will continue to shape within the studio and beyond.

Our latest edition of Under the Hood reflects theme of Vision. In looking at where we’re headed, Alma shared her vision for the NVIDIA campus in Santa Clara and the inherent power of subtlety. She envisioned a shifting material palette, from cool grays in shade to warmer tones in sun, which lead to a nuanced and experiential landscape.

Stay tuned for more on our second promotion!

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt and Jason O’Rear

This Spring, we’re proud to share two exciting promotions within the studio, beginning with Alma Du Solier’s appointment as Partner. Alma has been a driving force at HOOD, bringing clarity, care, and conviction to our work and office. As she steps into this new role, we’re excited to see the vision she will continue to shape within the studio and beyond.

Our latest edition of Under the Hood reflects theme of Vision. In looking at where we’re headed, Alma shared her vision for the NVIDIA campus in Santa Clara and the inherent power of subtlety. She envisioned a shifting material palette, from cool grays in shade to warmer tones in sun, which lead to a nuanced and experiential landscape.

Stay tuned for more on our second promotion!

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt and Jason O’Rear

This Spring, we’re proud to share two exciting promotions within the studio, beginning with Alma Du Solier’s appointment as Partner. Alma has been a driving force at HOOD, bringing clarity, care, and conviction to our work and office. As she steps into this new role, we’re excited to see the vision she will continue to shape within the studio and beyond.

Our latest edition of Under the Hood reflects theme of Vision. In looking at where we’re headed, Alma shared her vision for the NVIDIA campus in Santa Clara and the inherent power of subtlety. She envisioned a shifting material palette, from cool grays in shade to warmer tones in sun, which lead to a nuanced and experiential landscape.

Stay tuned for more on our second promotion!

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt and Jason O’Rear

This Spring, we’re proud to share two exciting promotions within the studio, beginning with Alma Du Solier’s appointment as Partner. Alma has been a driving force at HOOD, bringing clarity, care, and conviction to our work and office. As she steps into this new role, we’re excited to see the vision she will continue to shape within the studio and beyond.

Our latest edition of Under the Hood reflects theme of Vision. In looking at where we’re headed, Alma shared her vision for the NVIDIA campus in Santa Clara and the inherent power of subtlety. She envisioned a shifting material palette, from cool grays in shade to warmer tones in sun, which lead to a nuanced and experiential landscape.

Stay tuned for more on our second promotion!

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt and Jason O’Rear

@time has named Walter to the 2026 TIME100, its annual list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

The TIME100 recognizes individuals whose work is shaping culture, advancing critical conversations, and redefining the future. As noted by landscape architect Kate Orff in her tribute , “Walter has an almost kaleidoscopic power to ground us where we are, by propelling us into the past and simultaneously toward a more just future that is slowly coming into focus.”

The full list and tributes appear in the April 27, 2026 issue of Time, available on newsstands April 17 and online.

Thank you @Time!

Image by Alex Welsh, New York Times/Redux

Introducing ‘Under the Hood” — Hood Design Studio’s seasonal newsletter, where we explore the creative ideas driving the studio.

In our first edition, we turn our attention to TREE — not just as a form, but as a gift, a community builder, and a keeper of memories. Join Walter Hood and Principal Alma Du Solier as they invite us to see Trees with new eyes. In Memory Trees, Alma, our Studio Director, reflects on how trees carry personal and collective memory—from the mismatched species of her childhood in Monterrey to the eclectic mix lining the streets of West Oakland. She sees this patchwork of plantings as a living record of individual choices, a reflection of how communities shape their environments in their own image.

Subscribe via the link in bio to get ‘Under the Hood’ in your inbox.

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt

Introducing ‘Under the Hood” — Hood Design Studio’s seasonal newsletter, where we explore the creative ideas driving the studio.

In our first edition, we turn our attention to TREE — not just as a form, but as a gift, a community builder, and a keeper of memories. Join Walter Hood and Principal Alma Du Solier as they invite us to see Trees with new eyes. In Memory Trees, Alma, our Studio Director, reflects on how trees carry personal and collective memory—from the mismatched species of her childhood in Monterrey to the eclectic mix lining the streets of West Oakland. She sees this patchwork of plantings as a living record of individual choices, a reflection of how communities shape their environments in their own image.

Subscribe via the link in bio to get ‘Under the Hood’ in your inbox.

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt

Introducing ‘Under the Hood” — Hood Design Studio’s seasonal newsletter, where we explore the creative ideas driving the studio.

In our first edition, we turn our attention to TREE — not just as a form, but as a gift, a community builder, and a keeper of memories. Join Walter Hood and Principal Alma Du Solier as they invite us to see Trees with new eyes. In Memory Trees, Alma, our Studio Director, reflects on how trees carry personal and collective memory—from the mismatched species of her childhood in Monterrey to the eclectic mix lining the streets of West Oakland. She sees this patchwork of plantings as a living record of individual choices, a reflection of how communities shape their environments in their own image.

Subscribe via the link in bio to get ‘Under the Hood’ in your inbox.

Images by Adrienne Eberhardt

HOOD Design Studio is growing, and we’re looking for thoughtful, talented designers to join our team in Oakland. We are currently seeking both an entry-level designer and senior designer (8–10 years of experience) to contribute to a wide range of exciting projects. We’re looking for collaborative, curious, and design-driven individuals interested in contributing to meaningful and impactful work.

To apply, please send your resume and portfolio to Paul@hooddesignstudio.com

Image by Adrienne Eberhardt

As one of the three @swordsintoplowsharescville design proposals, @hooddesignstudio reimagines what public space can hold—transforming memory, landscape, and history into places for reflection, gathering, and civic meaning. Their proposal invites us to reckon with the past while shaping a more just future.

On view at JSAAHC + sipcville.com. Feedback open through May 30, 2026.

We’re excitedto celebrate Walter being named to the 2026 #CULT100 by @cultured_mag, a recognition of 100 visionaries shaping culture today.

This year’s list highlights an appetite for risk—work that resists being flattened for mass appeal and instead reflects bold, singular visions. As Cultured notes, Walter transforms overlooked spaces into vibrant gathering places, a practice that embodies this ethos.

Explore the full list: https://www.culturedmag.com/cult-100-2026/

#CULT100 #WalterHood #LandscapeArchitecture PublicArt

Image by: @adrienneeberhardtcreative

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
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Story by @Jill_Sieracki
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Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
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#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
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Story by @Jill_Sieracki
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Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
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#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

Landscape designer Walter Hood (@HoodDesignStudio) conveys messages of culture, community, and history through his imaginative use of specimen trees and flowering shrubs complemented by outdoor sculpture, water elements, and inventive structures. His practice, based in Oakland, California, shapes green spaces and public plazas with narratives around unity, nature, or the Black experience while enhancing social interactions. Learn more about this 2026 Creative Mind in our new Spring issue.
—
Story by @Jill_Sieracki
—
Photos by and courtesy of @AdrienneEberhardtCreative; @SaharChPhoto; @HoodDesignStudio; @CooperHewitt
—
#WalterHood #LandscapeDesign #GalerieMagazine #LiveArtfully

SAN has art from @TIME Magazine’s 2026 100 Most Influential People 👏 👏

Artist Walter Hood @hooddesignstudio was selected for this annual list for his powerful landscape architecture and social art practice.

See his public art at SAN:
Migrations, T1 Arrivals Curb
Carry On, T2 International Arrivals

Read the full TIME100 tribute in our link in bio

SAN has art from @TIME Magazine’s 2026 100 Most Influential People 👏 👏

Artist Walter Hood @hooddesignstudio was selected for this annual list for his powerful landscape architecture and social art practice.

See his public art at SAN:
Migrations, T1 Arrivals Curb
Carry On, T2 International Arrivals

Read the full TIME100 tribute in our link in bio

We’re proud to share another exciting promotion within the studio: Sarita Schreiber’s appointment as Social Art Director. Sarita has long been instrumental in shaping HOOD’s social art practice, bringing curiosity, rigor, and a deep commitment to cultural expression. As she steps into this role, we look forward to the continued evolution of this work within the studio and beyond.

In Sarita’s feature, Space for the Unknown, she describes vision not as a fixed outcome, but as the courage to make space for the unknown. Drawing from her role as project manager for Black Towers/Black Power, first presented in MoMA’s Reconstructions exhibition and now part of SFMOMA’s permanent collection, she highlights how visionary work can provoke new ways of thinking about space, power, and possibility.

Images by: Pablo Mason, SFMOMA, Clelia Cadamuro, County of San Bernardino, Ethan Kaplan, Adrienne Eberhardt, David Ross

We’re proud to share another exciting promotion within the studio: Sarita Schreiber’s appointment as Social Art Director. Sarita has long been instrumental in shaping HOOD’s social art practice, bringing curiosity, rigor, and a deep commitment to cultural expression. As she steps into this role, we look forward to the continued evolution of this work within the studio and beyond.

In Sarita’s feature, Space for the Unknown, she describes vision not as a fixed outcome, but as the courage to make space for the unknown. Drawing from her role as project manager for Black Towers/Black Power, first presented in MoMA’s Reconstructions exhibition and now part of SFMOMA’s permanent collection, she highlights how visionary work can provoke new ways of thinking about space, power, and possibility.

Images by: Pablo Mason, SFMOMA, Clelia Cadamuro, County of San Bernardino, Ethan Kaplan, Adrienne Eberhardt, David Ross

We’re proud to share another exciting promotion within the studio: Sarita Schreiber’s appointment as Social Art Director. Sarita has long been instrumental in shaping HOOD’s social art practice, bringing curiosity, rigor, and a deep commitment to cultural expression. As she steps into this role, we look forward to the continued evolution of this work within the studio and beyond.

In Sarita’s feature, Space for the Unknown, she describes vision not as a fixed outcome, but as the courage to make space for the unknown. Drawing from her role as project manager for Black Towers/Black Power, first presented in MoMA’s Reconstructions exhibition and now part of SFMOMA’s permanent collection, she highlights how visionary work can provoke new ways of thinking about space, power, and possibility.

Images by: Pablo Mason, SFMOMA, Clelia Cadamuro, County of San Bernardino, Ethan Kaplan, Adrienne Eberhardt, David Ross

We’re proud to share another exciting promotion within the studio: Sarita Schreiber’s appointment as Social Art Director. Sarita has long been instrumental in shaping HOOD’s social art practice, bringing curiosity, rigor, and a deep commitment to cultural expression. As she steps into this role, we look forward to the continued evolution of this work within the studio and beyond.

In Sarita’s feature, Space for the Unknown, she describes vision not as a fixed outcome, but as the courage to make space for the unknown. Drawing from her role as project manager for Black Towers/Black Power, first presented in MoMA’s Reconstructions exhibition and now part of SFMOMA’s permanent collection, she highlights how visionary work can provoke new ways of thinking about space, power, and possibility.

Images by: Pablo Mason, SFMOMA, Clelia Cadamuro, County of San Bernardino, Ethan Kaplan, Adrienne Eberhardt, David Ross

We’re proud to share another exciting promotion within the studio: Sarita Schreiber’s appointment as Social Art Director. Sarita has long been instrumental in shaping HOOD’s social art practice, bringing curiosity, rigor, and a deep commitment to cultural expression. As she steps into this role, we look forward to the continued evolution of this work within the studio and beyond.

In Sarita’s feature, Space for the Unknown, she describes vision not as a fixed outcome, but as the courage to make space for the unknown. Drawing from her role as project manager for Black Towers/Black Power, first presented in MoMA’s Reconstructions exhibition and now part of SFMOMA’s permanent collection, she highlights how visionary work can provoke new ways of thinking about space, power, and possibility.

Images by: Pablo Mason, SFMOMA, Clelia Cadamuro, County of San Bernardino, Ethan Kaplan, Adrienne Eberhardt, David Ross

“There is a theory that if an area is left undeveloped for long enough, the people who live there will go away,” Walter Hood said at In Focus: Transformation. “That theory has a long history of practice in our country.”

In his presentation at the Hammer Museum, the acclaimed landscape architect shared his studio’s research on “underdeveloped urban landscapes”: neighborhoods in American cities, mostly home to brown and Black people, that have been allowed to decline by design. “We leave some of these landscapes in our cities underdeveloped for a particular reason: we want the labor. We don’t necessarily want people to lead great lives.”

In three recent and ongoing projects across the United States—the transformation of the Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City, the Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park in Jacksonville, the Overtown Public Realm in Miami—Hood’s studio is using design to redress the conditions this approach to urban planning has produced, revealing the local histories it erased and creating green, open spaces where communities can come together.

“We think about getting people back into these places through narratives,” Hood said. “And this idea of development through arts and culture has been powerful in our storytelling, but also in getting people to put capital back in those places, to give people access to daily beauty.” Watch Hood’s full presentation at the link in bio 🔗

In Focus: Transformation took place at the Hammer Museum on Saturday February 21, 2026. Visit our website to watch the full program.

Event Photo: @smgeventphotos

#WalterHood #ArchitectureTalks #DesignTalks

“There is a theory that if an area is left undeveloped for long enough, the people who live there will go away,” Walter Hood said at In Focus: Transformation. “That theory has a long history of practice in our country.”

In his presentation at the Hammer Museum, the acclaimed landscape architect shared his studio’s research on “underdeveloped urban landscapes”: neighborhoods in American cities, mostly home to brown and Black people, that have been allowed to decline by design. “We leave some of these landscapes in our cities underdeveloped for a particular reason: we want the labor. We don’t necessarily want people to lead great lives.”

In three recent and ongoing projects across the United States—the transformation of the Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City, the Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park in Jacksonville, the Overtown Public Realm in Miami—Hood’s studio is using design to redress the conditions this approach to urban planning has produced, revealing the local histories it erased and creating green, open spaces where communities can come together.

“We think about getting people back into these places through narratives,” Hood said. “And this idea of development through arts and culture has been powerful in our storytelling, but also in getting people to put capital back in those places, to give people access to daily beauty.” Watch Hood’s full presentation at the link in bio 🔗

In Focus: Transformation took place at the Hammer Museum on Saturday February 21, 2026. Visit our website to watch the full program.

Event Photo: @smgeventphotos

#WalterHood #ArchitectureTalks #DesignTalks

“There is a theory that if an area is left undeveloped for long enough, the people who live there will go away,” Walter Hood said at In Focus: Transformation. “That theory has a long history of practice in our country.”

In his presentation at the Hammer Museum, the acclaimed landscape architect shared his studio’s research on “underdeveloped urban landscapes”: neighborhoods in American cities, mostly home to brown and Black people, that have been allowed to decline by design. “We leave some of these landscapes in our cities underdeveloped for a particular reason: we want the labor. We don’t necessarily want people to lead great lives.”

In three recent and ongoing projects across the United States—the transformation of the Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City, the Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park in Jacksonville, the Overtown Public Realm in Miami—Hood’s studio is using design to redress the conditions this approach to urban planning has produced, revealing the local histories it erased and creating green, open spaces where communities can come together.

“We think about getting people back into these places through narratives,” Hood said. “And this idea of development through arts and culture has been powerful in our storytelling, but also in getting people to put capital back in those places, to give people access to daily beauty.” Watch Hood’s full presentation at the link in bio 🔗

In Focus: Transformation took place at the Hammer Museum on Saturday February 21, 2026. Visit our website to watch the full program.

Event Photo: @smgeventphotos

#WalterHood #ArchitectureTalks #DesignTalks

“There is a theory that if an area is left undeveloped for long enough, the people who live there will go away,” Walter Hood said at In Focus: Transformation. “That theory has a long history of practice in our country.”

In his presentation at the Hammer Museum, the acclaimed landscape architect shared his studio’s research on “underdeveloped urban landscapes”: neighborhoods in American cities, mostly home to brown and Black people, that have been allowed to decline by design. “We leave some of these landscapes in our cities underdeveloped for a particular reason: we want the labor. We don’t necessarily want people to lead great lives.”

In three recent and ongoing projects across the United States—the transformation of the Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City, the Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park in Jacksonville, the Overtown Public Realm in Miami—Hood’s studio is using design to redress the conditions this approach to urban planning has produced, revealing the local histories it erased and creating green, open spaces where communities can come together.

“We think about getting people back into these places through narratives,” Hood said. “And this idea of development through arts and culture has been powerful in our storytelling, but also in getting people to put capital back in those places, to give people access to daily beauty.” Watch Hood’s full presentation at the link in bio 🔗

In Focus: Transformation took place at the Hammer Museum on Saturday February 21, 2026. Visit our website to watch the full program.

Event Photo: @smgeventphotos

#WalterHood #ArchitectureTalks #DesignTalks

“There is a theory that if an area is left undeveloped for long enough, the people who live there will go away,” Walter Hood said at In Focus: Transformation. “That theory has a long history of practice in our country.”

In his presentation at the Hammer Museum, the acclaimed landscape architect shared his studio’s research on “underdeveloped urban landscapes”: neighborhoods in American cities, mostly home to brown and Black people, that have been allowed to decline by design. “We leave some of these landscapes in our cities underdeveloped for a particular reason: we want the labor. We don’t necessarily want people to lead great lives.”

In three recent and ongoing projects across the United States—the transformation of the Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City, the Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park in Jacksonville, the Overtown Public Realm in Miami—Hood’s studio is using design to redress the conditions this approach to urban planning has produced, revealing the local histories it erased and creating green, open spaces where communities can come together.

“We think about getting people back into these places through narratives,” Hood said. “And this idea of development through arts and culture has been powerful in our storytelling, but also in getting people to put capital back in those places, to give people access to daily beauty.” Watch Hood’s full presentation at the link in bio 🔗

In Focus: Transformation took place at the Hammer Museum on Saturday February 21, 2026. Visit our website to watch the full program.

Event Photo: @smgeventphotos

#WalterHood #ArchitectureTalks #DesignTalks

“There is a theory that if an area is left undeveloped for long enough, the people who live there will go away,” Walter Hood said at In Focus: Transformation. “That theory has a long history of practice in our country.”

In his presentation at the Hammer Museum, the acclaimed landscape architect shared his studio’s research on “underdeveloped urban landscapes”: neighborhoods in American cities, mostly home to brown and Black people, that have been allowed to decline by design. “We leave some of these landscapes in our cities underdeveloped for a particular reason: we want the labor. We don’t necessarily want people to lead great lives.”

In three recent and ongoing projects across the United States—the transformation of the Lincoln Center Plaza in New York City, the Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing Park in Jacksonville, the Overtown Public Realm in Miami—Hood’s studio is using design to redress the conditions this approach to urban planning has produced, revealing the local histories it erased and creating green, open spaces where communities can come together.

“We think about getting people back into these places through narratives,” Hood said. “And this idea of development through arts and culture has been powerful in our storytelling, but also in getting people to put capital back in those places, to give people access to daily beauty.” Watch Hood’s full presentation at the link in bio 🔗

In Focus: Transformation took place at the Hammer Museum on Saturday February 21, 2026. Visit our website to watch the full program.

Event Photo: @smgeventphotos

#WalterHood #ArchitectureTalks #DesignTalks

On this week's episode, @jarrettfuller is joined by Walter Hood @hooddesignstudio to talk about thinking of landscapes as a medium, his interest in subverting typologies, and why he refers to his work as a cultural practice.

Walter Hood is a landscape architect, architect, artist, and urbanist. He’s the creative director and founder of Hood Design Studio in Oakland, CA and the former chair of the department of landscape architecture at University of California, Berkeley. He’s the author of Blues & Jazz Landscapes, Urban Diaries, and the co-editor of Black Landscapes Matter.

🎧 Listen to the episode at the link in our bio!

Join us for a virtual lecture with Paul Peters, Principal at Hood Design Studio.

On Thursday, March 12, 2026 | 7–8 p.m. ET, Paul will share the studio’s landscape design process for the African Ancestors Garden at the International African American Museum in Charleston.

Rooted in both the Lowcountry landscape and the broader African diaspora, the garden is conceived as a series of sub-gardens that honor ancestral memory through botanical and material storytelling. From the African Origins Garden, which traces the migration of plants across continents, to the Lowcountry Garden inspired by marsh ecologies and coastal landforms, this contemplative landscape weaves ecology, history, and cultural remembrance into a space for reflection and learning.

To learn more, register at the link in our stories. We hope you join us.

Images by: @adrienneeberhardtcreative @estophoto @keithisaacsphoto @fernandogguerra

Join us for a virtual lecture with Paul Peters, Principal at Hood Design Studio.

On Thursday, March 12, 2026 | 7–8 p.m. ET, Paul will share the studio’s landscape design process for the African Ancestors Garden at the International African American Museum in Charleston.

Rooted in both the Lowcountry landscape and the broader African diaspora, the garden is conceived as a series of sub-gardens that honor ancestral memory through botanical and material storytelling. From the African Origins Garden, which traces the migration of plants across continents, to the Lowcountry Garden inspired by marsh ecologies and coastal landforms, this contemplative landscape weaves ecology, history, and cultural remembrance into a space for reflection and learning.

To learn more, register at the link in our stories. We hope you join us.

Images by: @adrienneeberhardtcreative @estophoto @keithisaacsphoto @fernandogguerra

Join us for a virtual lecture with Paul Peters, Principal at Hood Design Studio.

On Thursday, March 12, 2026 | 7–8 p.m. ET, Paul will share the studio’s landscape design process for the African Ancestors Garden at the International African American Museum in Charleston.

Rooted in both the Lowcountry landscape and the broader African diaspora, the garden is conceived as a series of sub-gardens that honor ancestral memory through botanical and material storytelling. From the African Origins Garden, which traces the migration of plants across continents, to the Lowcountry Garden inspired by marsh ecologies and coastal landforms, this contemplative landscape weaves ecology, history, and cultural remembrance into a space for reflection and learning.

To learn more, register at the link in our stories. We hope you join us.

Images by: @adrienneeberhardtcreative @estophoto @keithisaacsphoto @fernandogguerra

Join us for a virtual lecture with Paul Peters, Principal at Hood Design Studio.

On Thursday, March 12, 2026 | 7–8 p.m. ET, Paul will share the studio’s landscape design process for the African Ancestors Garden at the International African American Museum in Charleston.

Rooted in both the Lowcountry landscape and the broader African diaspora, the garden is conceived as a series of sub-gardens that honor ancestral memory through botanical and material storytelling. From the African Origins Garden, which traces the migration of plants across continents, to the Lowcountry Garden inspired by marsh ecologies and coastal landforms, this contemplative landscape weaves ecology, history, and cultural remembrance into a space for reflection and learning.

To learn more, register at the link in our stories. We hope you join us.

Images by: @adrienneeberhardtcreative @estophoto @keithisaacsphoto @fernandogguerra

Join us for a virtual lecture with Paul Peters, Principal at Hood Design Studio.

On Thursday, March 12, 2026 | 7–8 p.m. ET, Paul will share the studio’s landscape design process for the African Ancestors Garden at the International African American Museum in Charleston.

Rooted in both the Lowcountry landscape and the broader African diaspora, the garden is conceived as a series of sub-gardens that honor ancestral memory through botanical and material storytelling. From the African Origins Garden, which traces the migration of plants across continents, to the Lowcountry Garden inspired by marsh ecologies and coastal landforms, this contemplative landscape weaves ecology, history, and cultural remembrance into a space for reflection and learning.

To learn more, register at the link in our stories. We hope you join us.

Images by: @adrienneeberhardtcreative @estophoto @keithisaacsphoto @fernandogguerra

Join us for a virtual lecture with Paul Peters, Principal at Hood Design Studio.

On Thursday, March 12, 2026 | 7–8 p.m. ET, Paul will share the studio’s landscape design process for the African Ancestors Garden at the International African American Museum in Charleston.

Rooted in both the Lowcountry landscape and the broader African diaspora, the garden is conceived as a series of sub-gardens that honor ancestral memory through botanical and material storytelling. From the African Origins Garden, which traces the migration of plants across continents, to the Lowcountry Garden inspired by marsh ecologies and coastal landforms, this contemplative landscape weaves ecology, history, and cultural remembrance into a space for reflection and learning.

To learn more, register at the link in our stories. We hope you join us.

Images by: @adrienneeberhardtcreative @estophoto @keithisaacsphoto @fernandogguerra