Udo Weilacher

Udo Weilacher
Born1963 (age 62–63)
Kaiserslautern, West Germany
OccupationLandscape architect
Known forResearch on relationship between art and landscape; Theory and history of contemporary landscape architecture; Transformation of cultural landscapes
Academic background
EducationGardener (1984)
Technical University of Munich (Diploma)
California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
ETH Zurich (Dr. sc. ETH)
Academic work
DisciplineLandscape Architecture
InstitutionsUniversity of Karlsruhe
ETH Zurich (scientific assistant, lecturer)
Leibniz University Hannover (Professor, Dean)
Technical University of Munich (Professor)
Main interests
Art and landscape; Theory and history of contemporary landscape architecture; Transformation of former cultural landscapes (e.g., industrial landscapes in the Alps)

Udo Weilacher (born 1963 in Kaiserslautern) is a German landscape architect, author and Professor for Landscape Architecture.

Biography

Udo Weilacher was educated as a gardener in 1984. He studied landscape architecture at the Technical University of Munich-Weihenstephan and at the California State Polytechnic University, Pomona between 1986 and 1993. Since 1995, Weilacher has been an officially registered Garden- and Landscape Architect at the Chamber of Architecture in Germany. At the Technical University of Munich he received his diploma from the German landscape architect and professor Peter Latz. He worked with the renowned Swiss landscape architect Dieter Kienast as a scientific assistant and a lecturer at the University of Karlsruhe and the ETH Zurich. Weilacher began his doctoral research at ETH Zurich under Dieter Kienast. Following Kienast’s death in 1998, Arthur Rüegg became the principal examiner, with Peter Latz serving as co-examiner. The dissertation Visionary Gardens. Modern Landscapes by Ernst Cramer (1898–1980) was completed with distinction in 2001.[1]

In 2002 Weilacher became full professor for Landscape Architecture and Design[2] at the Leibniz University Hannover and, in 2006-08, Dean of the Faculty of Architecture and Landscape Sciences. Since April 2009 Udo Weilacher has been a full professor for Landscape Architecture and Transformation[3] at the Technical University of Munich, Department of Architecture, TUM School of Engineering and Design.[4]

Weilacher worked from 1998 to 2002 as a freelance journalist for NZZ FOLIO, the monthly magazine of the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. He published his works internationally, is a member of international juries and scientific advisor in editorial boards of scientific magazines[5] and research institutes.[6]

Research and writing

Weilacher’s research focuses on the relationship between landscape architecture and the visual arts[7], the theory and history of twentieth-century and contemporary landscape architecture, and the transformation of cultural and post-industrial landscapes. His early research examined the relationship between Land Art and landscape architectural design.[8] This work resulted in Between Landscape Architecture and Land Art[9], published 1996 in German and English editions.

A further focus of his research has been the history and theory of modern landscape architecture[10], including the work of Ernst Cramer, Dieter Kienast and Peter Latz. His doctoral dissertation at ETH Zurich examined the work of Swiss landscape architect Ernst Cramer.[11] In Syntax of Landscape (2008)[12], Weilacher analyzed the work of Peter Latz and Partners, including the transformation of post-industrial sites such as Landschaftspark Duisburg-Nord and Parco Dora in Turin. The book received the John Brinckerhoff Jackson Book Prize from the Foundation for Landscape Studies[13] in 2011. In 2017, Weilacher was a Mellon Senior Practitioner Resident in Garden and Landscape Studies at Dumbarton Oaks, Harvard University.[14] During the residency, his research focused on structuralism in international architecture and landscape architecture.[15]

At the Technical University of Munich, Weilacher’s research increasingly addressed the transformation of industrial and urban landscapes. From 2018 to 2021, he led the TUM contribution to trAILs – Transformation of Alpine Industrial Landscapes, an international Alpine Space research project concerned with the sustainable transformation of former industrial sites in Alpine regions. The Technical University of Munich was lead partner of the project, worked with four pilot regions and developed a WebGIS, an assessment tool, co-design procedures and learning modules for the transformation of industrial brownfields.[16]

More recent collaborative research has addressed the transformation and climate adaptation of vulnerable waterway, urban and coastal landscapes. Research on the Nile Delta examined landscape-based regeneration of waterways in response to water scarcity and environmental degradation.[17] In collaborative research with Sara S. Fouad and earth and planetary scientist Essam Heggy, Weilacher investigated the transformation of Alexandria’s urban waterways and their potential role in climate adaptation.[18] In 2025, this research was extended to hydroclimatic risks affecting buildings and infrastructure along the southern Mediterranean coast and to adaptive landscape mitigation strategies.[19]

Academic Memberships

Udo Weilacher is or was a member of national and international scientific and professional organizations:

  • BDLA, German Association of Landscape Architects
  • DGGL, German Society of Garden Architecture and Landscape Culture
  • CGL, Centre of Garden Art and Landscape Architecture[20] at the Leibniz University Hannover
  • Deutscher Werkbund, German Association of Craftsmen
  • International Doctoral College "Spatial Research Lab"[21]

Honors and awards

Publications (selection)

  • Weilacher, Udo (1996/1999): Between Landscape Architecture and Land Art. Basel Berlin Boston: Birkhauser; ISBN 3-7643-6119-0
  • Weilacher, Udo (2005): Visionary Gardens. Modern Landscapes by Ernst Cramer. Basel Berlin Boston: Birkhauser; ISBN 3-7643-6567-6
  • Weilacher, Udo (2005): In Gardens. Profiles of contemporary European Landscape Architecture. Basel Berlin Boston: Birkhauser; ISBN 3-7643-7084-X
  • Udo Weilacher (2007): The Garden as the Last Luxury Today: Thought-Provoking Garden Projects by Dieter Kienast. in: Conan, Michel (ed.): Contemporary Garden Aesthetics, Creations and Interpretations. 81-95. Harvard University Press ISBN 0-88402-325-7
  • Weilacher, Udo (2008): Syntax of Landscape. The Landscape Architecture by Peter Latz and Partners. Basel Berlin Boston: Birkhauser; ISBN 978-3-7643-7615-4
  • Weilacher, Udo (2020): Garden Thinking in Cities of Tomorrow. in: SPOOL. Journal of Architecture and the Built Environment, vol. 6; doi:https://doi.org/10.7480/spool.2020.1.5484
  • Weilacher, Udo et al. (2023): Waterways transformation in the vulnerable port city of Alexandria. in: Cities, vol. 141, Oct. 2023; doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2023.104426

References

  1. ↑ Doctoral Theses completed at ETH Zurich
  2. ↑ Landscape Architecture and Design at Leibniz University Hannover, ila.uni-hannover.de; accessed July 24, 2015.(in German)
  3. ↑ Landscape Architecture and Transformation, Technical University of Munich, lai.ar.tum.de; accessed March 17, 2024. (in German)
  4. ↑ professional profile at the Technical University of Munich
  5. ↑ c.f. JoLA Journal of Landscape Architecture
  6. ↑ c.f. CGL, Centre of Garden Art and Landscape Architecture
  7. ↑ "Landschaftsarchitektur und Bildende Kunst". TUM Research Portal. Technical University of Munich. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  8. ↑ McGirr, Patricia (1997). "Between Landscape Architecture and Land Art by Udo Weilacher: Book Review". Landscape Journal. University of Wisconsin Press: 121–122. ISSN 0277-2426.
  9. ↑ "Between Landscape Architecture and Land Art". Library of Congress. Library of Congress. LCCN 99029959. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  10. ↑ "Geschichte und Theorie der Landschaftsarchitektur des 20. Jahrhunderts". TUM Research Portal. Technical University of Munich. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  11. ↑ "Visionäre Gärten – Die modernen Landschaften von Ernst Cramer (1898–1980)". ETH Research Collection. ETH Zurich. 2001. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  12. ↑ Weilacher, Udo (2008). Syntax of Landscape: The Landscape Architecture of Peter Latz and Partners. Birkhäuser. doi:10.1007/978-3-7643-8277-3.
  13. ↑ "2011 John Brinckerhoff Jackson Book Prize". Foundation for Landscape Studies. Retrieved August 25, 2026.
  14. ↑ "Mellon Fellows and Senior Practitioners". Dumbarton Oaks. Harvard University. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  15. ↑ "Stabilizing Living Networks. Structuralism in Landscape Architecture". TUM Research Portal. Technical University of Munich. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  16. ↑ "trAILs – Alpine Industrial Landscapes Transformation". Interreg Alpine Space Programme. European Union. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  17. ↑ Fouad, Sara S.; Heggy, Essam; Abotalib, Abotalib Z.; Ramah, Mohamed; Jomaa, Seifeddine; Weilacher, Udo (2022). "Landscape-based regeneration of the Nile Delta's waterways in support of water conservation and environmental protection". Ecological Indicators. 145. doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2022.109660.
  18. ↑ Fouad, Sara S.; Heggy, Essam; Weilacher, Udo (2023). "Waterways transformation in the vulnerable port city of Alexandria". Cities. 141. doi:10.1016/j.cities.2023.104426.
  19. ↑ Fouad, Sara S.; Heggy, Essam; Amrouni, Oula; Hzami, Abderraouf; Nijhuis, Steffen; Mohamed, Nesma; Saleh, Ibrahim H.; Jomaa, Seifeddine; Elsheshtawy, Yasser; Weilacher, Udo (2025). "Soaring Building Collapses in Southern Mediterranean Coasts: Hydroclimatic Drivers & Adaptive Landscape Mitigations". Earth's Future. 13 (2). doi:10.1029/2024EF004883.
  20. ↑ https://www.cgl.uni-hannover.de/en/}}
  21. ↑ "IDC - Spatial Research Lab: Startseite".
  22. ↑ "Foundation for Landscape Studies".
  23. ↑ "Udo Weilacher Joins Garden and Landscape Studies as the 2017 Mellon Practitioner Resident".
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