GREEN GOALS

As bruce scott discovers, the true beauty of the public spaces designed by Bangkok-based landscape architect KOTCHAKORN “KOTCH” VORAAKHOM lies in their ability to function as sustainable, urban green infrastructure

hen I first contacted landscape architect Kotchakorn “Kotch” Voraakhom in early April to plan our meeting, we agreed it would be ideal to conduct both the interview and the photoshoot at her award-winning Chulalongkorn University Centenary Park. Unfortunately, within a few days our plans were scuppered by a government decree prohibiting access to all public parks as part of the ongoing effort to combat the spread of Coronavirus. It was a sad irony that the green spaces created specifically for the health of city residents had become off-limits for the sake of the health of city residents.

“I actually kind of agree with the decision, in the sense of trying to not to have people together in the park,” Kotch admits when we finally do get together; sitting poolside in a leafy, residential enclave in Huay Kwang where the offices of Landprocess, her landscape design firm, are located.

“But they’re probably just going to walk alone, or with someone in their family,” she’s quick to counter, “so to eliminate a place vital to our mental health is, at this point, a bad decision in a way. Especially in Bangkok where we have such a limited opportunity in terms of public space in general.

“Being healthy is not just about being clean and washing your hands,” she continues. “It actually involves so much about one’s mental state, and being with nature is a really important part of that wellbeing.”

Our talk naturally turns to the ever-evolving role of green space in the urban environment; a subject that has been defining Kotch’s career since she returned from living and working in the USA almost a decade ago. Born and raised in Bangkok, Kotch studied landscape architecture first at Chulalongkorn University and then at Harvard, where she was a student from 2004 to 2006. After finishing her studies she worked on a variety of intriguing projects, including a casino in Las Vegas and the winter home in Aspen of a Saudi Prince. It was certainly great experience, but as a designer she began to think more in terms of ecology and less about making things “to look nice only”.