Florence Bell Robinson Explained

Florence Bell Robinson
Birth Date:1 November 1885
Birth Place:Lapeer, Michigan, U.S.
Nationality:American
Alma Mater:Kalamazoo College
Discipline:Landscape architecture
Workplaces:University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign

Florence Bell Robinson (November 1, 1885 – August 13, 1973) was a prominent American educator in landscape architecture and a pioneer in introducing women into the field.[1]

Life

Born in Lapeer, Michigan, Robinson received her undergraduate degree in science from Kalamazoo College in 1908, and the BArch and MID (Master in Landscape Design) in 1924 from the University of Michigan. She ran her own landscape firm from 1916 to 1926 and worked as a draftsperson for J.W. Case in Detroit.[2]

She arrived at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in 1926 and spent the rest of her career there, developing a highly ranked landscape architecture department with colleagues Stanley White and Karl Lohmann. In 1926 she was hired as associate teacher, then in 1929 she was hired as the first female tenure track faculty member. In 1949 she was promoted to associate professor, then in 1951 she was made full professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture. She retired in 1953.[3] In addition to teaching she also maintained her own practice. An expert in the area of plants and planting design, she published and lectured extensively, and developed a plant cataloging system for educating students that was later published.[2] [4] She died in Hendersonville, North Carolina in 1973 after suffering a stroke.[5]

Many of her students went on to play a prominent role in the field of landscape architecture, including Hideo Sasaki, Peter Walker, and Richard Haag.[3]

Publications

Notes and References

  1. Book: Doumato, Lamia. Architecture and women: a bibliography documenting women architects, landscape architects, designers, architectural critics and writers, and women in related fields working in the United States. 1988-11-01. Garland Pub.. 9780824041052. en.
  2. Book: Hoddeson, Lillian. No Boundaries: University of Illinois Vignettes. 2004-01-01. University of Illinois Press. 9780252072031. en.
  3. Book: Dümpelmann, Sonja. Women, Modernity, and Landscape Architecture. Beardsley. John. 2015-02-11. Routledge. 9781317556558. en.
  4. Book: Birnbaum, Charles A.. Shaping the American Landscape: New Profiles from the Pioneers of American Landscape Design Project. Foell. Stephanie Sue. 2009-01-01. University of Virginia Press. 9780813927893. en.
  5. North Carolina, Death Certificates, 1909–1976