Oldfields Estate / Hertitage Landscapes



Estates

Oldfields Estate
Indianapolis Museum of Art, Indianapolis, Indiana

Heritage Landscapes has completed a series of important planning and implementation projects at Oldfields, an Olmsted Brothers, Percival Gallagher estate landscape, which is now part of the Indianapolis Museum of Art. The 26-acre Oldfields property is significant as a surviving example of county-place era design in the Midwest. The Oldfields Landscape Planning Project addressed the history, existing conditions and future of Oldfields within the context of the 52-acre Indianapolis Museum of Art campus. In addition to recapturing historic landscape character at Oldfields, the plan addressed contemporary needs of vehicular and pedestrian circulation, wayfinding and interpretive signage, and defined landscape maintenance staffing, skills and level of effort.

Heritage Landscapes was responsible for planning, construction documents and administration of the Ravine Garden reconstruction, an informal highly articulated garden with three pools, cascade, retaining walls, utility infrastructure and complex plantings, completed in spring 1999. The rehabilitation of an extensive perimeter brick wall, with original capstones conserved and historic stone and iron gates repaired and replicated, was completed in 2001. The Lilly House was rehabilitated and opened in 2002. Heritage Landscapes designed a fully functional, aesthetically pleasing and historically compatible landscape around the building to recapture the character of selected areas and adapt others for public access and event use. A visitor welcome area functions for house and garden tour origination and interpretive exhibits. Oldfields received the 2002 Midwest Construction project of the year award.

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Client:
Indianapolis Museum of Art

Project:
Oldfields Landscape Planning Project; Lilly House Landscape Restoration and Rehabilitation; Ravine Garden Reconstruction; Michigan Street Brick Wall Reconstruction; Sculpture & Horticulture Study for Indianapolis Museum of Art

Project Credits:
Heritage Landscapes, Preservation Landscape Architects & Planners, planning and implementation projects from 1994 to 2002. Lead consultant for Ravine Garden, Perimeter Gate and Wall; collaborator with The Hillier Group, Preservation Architects, Ciulla Design, exhibits and Shiel Sexton, Inc. construction managers for Lilly House; with HKP Landscape Architects, for Oldfields Landscape Planning Project; and with Jonathan Fairbanks, curator for Sculpture & Horticulture Study.

Award-Winning Project