Pearse O’Doherty, RLA, FASLA

President

Pearse O’Doherty has been practicing landscape architecture since his graduation from Syracuse University in 1968. In the early years, two major influences affected his approach to design. The first was a two-year Peace Corps residency stationed in the Zagros Mountains, a desert region of Iran. From this experience, Mr. O’Doherty learned the importance of light and shadow as key tools in his approach to landscape design. Furthermore, a career-long focus on fountain design was born by observing the life-giving effects of water first hand in the stark environment of the Middle East.

A second profound influence emerged in San Francisco where Pearse worked for Garrett Eckbo during the peak of Eckbo's career in the late 1960s. This opportunity to work with Eckbo, a father of the modern practice of landscape architecture, led to a deep appreciation of the famous works of Halprin, Sasaki, and Kiley. Pearse was deeply influenced by the modern masters of landscape architecture in their ease of introducing bold order to the landscape.

Living and working in Annapolis, Maryland for more than twenty years, Pearse is active in the boating community, including sea kayaking and sailing. The rich environment of the Chesapeake Bay is an inspiration that is reflected in Pearse’s regional projects.

Pearse was elected in 2006 to the American Society of Landscape Architects Council of Fellows, signifying an exceptional level of commitment and contribution to the profession.

EDUCATION:

Bachelor of Science, 1968, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York

Bachelor of Science in Landscape Architecture, 1968, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse , New York

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COURSES:

Harvard University, Graduate School of Design, Cambridge, Massachusetts

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS:

American Society of Landscape Architects, Fellow

PUBLIC SERVICE

Unity Garden Board, 2003-Present

Scenic Maryland, Board Member, 2003-Present

American Canoe Association, Sugar Island Trustee, 1999-Present

Annapolis Conservancy Board, 1989-1994

Friends of Maryland’s Olmsted Parks and Landscape, Inc., 1991-1993

REGISTERED LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT:

Oregon, 1971

Maryland, 1982; No. 574

Pennsylvania, 1995; No. LA-001389-R

Virginia, 2002; No. 0406 001066