Landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted was born in 1822, and many of the trees in the public parks he designed throughout his lifetime are still alive today. For his new book, “Olmsted Trees” (Hirmer), photographer Stanley Greenberg documented those long-established plants in parks across the United States, including Central Park and Prospect Park in New York, as well as park systems in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Chicago, Illinois, and Louisville, Kentucky.
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When Olmsted created his designs, he envisioned what the trees and shrubs would look like 40-plus years into the future. “I have all my life been considering the distant effects and always sacrificing immediate success and applause to that of the future,” he wrote in a letter to his son. Greenberg’s collection of black-and-white photographs is intended as an homage to Olmsted’s work and vision, as well as a message about taking care of the fragile natural environment.
Amanda Arnold is a senior editor.
Tags: nature photography
