Ten Design Lessons

Olmsted fought against distracting elements. He constantly simplified the scene, clearing and planting to clarify the “leading motive” of the natural site. Though he often faced criticism from those who found his style too rough and unkempt, Olmsted was as proud of what he didn’t do as what he did do. Thirty years after he helped to design Central Park, he observed to his ex-partner, Calvert Vaux, “The great merit of all the works you and I have done is that in them the larger opportunities of the topography have not been wasted in aiming at ordinary suburban gardening, cottage gardening effects. We have let it alone more than most gardeners can. But never too much, hardly enough.”

by Matt, Signal vs. Noise (http://37signals.com/svn/posts/2919-ten-design-lessons-from-frederick-law-olmsted-the-father-of-american-landscape-architecture)

See Also: http://www.olmsted.org/the-olmsted-legacy/olmsted-theory-and-design-principles/design-principles