{"id":126481,"date":"2025-10-15T09:43:32","date_gmt":"2025-10-15T08:43:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/landezine.com\/?p=126481"},"modified":"2025-10-15T09:43:37","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T08:43:37","slug":"mario-schjetnan-receives-the-2025-oberlander-prize","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/landezine.com\/mario-schjetnan-receives-the-2025-oberlander-prize\/","title":{"rendered":"Mario Schjetnan Receives the 2025 Oberlander Prize"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mexican landscape architect Mario Schjetnan and his office Grupo de Dise\u00f1o Urbano<\/a> (GDU) are the recipients of the 2025 Cornelia Hahn Oberlander International Landscape Architecture Prize. The award, administered by The Cultural Landscape Foundation<\/a> (TCLF), is a prestigious prize dedicated exclusively to landscape architecture. It is given biennially to a living practitioner whose work demonstrates exceptional talent, vision, and impact. The prize includes a $100,000 award and a series of public engagement programs. Schjetnan follows Julie Bargmann<\/a> (2021) and Kongjian Yu<\/a> (2023) as the third laureate.<\/p>\n

The 2025 jury included Claire Agre (chair), Arthur Adeya, Kirsten Bauer (ASPECT Studios<\/a>), Ellen Braae, Margarita Jover (aldayjover<\/a>), Sameep Padora, and Dorothy Tang. Oberlander Prize Curator Professor Elizabeth Mossop is Dean of the University of Technology Sydney<\/a> (UTS) School of Design, Architecture and Building in Australia<\/p>\n

In its citation, the jury highlighted GDU as \u201ca strong voice for social engagement and environmental justice in tandem with the art of landscape architecture,\u201d emphasizing the office\u2019s role in addressing rapid urbanization and access to open space as a fundamental right.<\/p>\n

Mario Schjetnan has played a central role in shaping landscape architecture in Latin America for over five decades. Based in Mexico City, his work frames landscape as essential urban infrastructure, linking environmental systems, cultural memory, and the right to public space. He studied architecture at UNAM and earned a Master\u2019s in Landscape Architecture from UC Berkeley in 1970, influenced by Lawrence Halprin and Mexican modernists such as Luis Barrag\u00e1n and Max Cetto.<\/p>\n

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\u201cWe have a human right to open space.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u2014 Mario Schjetnan<\/p>\n

Early in his career, as head of urban and housing design at INFONAVIT, Schjetnan worked in more than 100 cities across Mexico. This period, which he describes as a \u201cpost-doc in Mexico,\u201d shaped his understanding of the country\u2019s cultural and ecological diversity and the role of public space in rapidly growing urban contexts. Schjetnan received the Sir Geoffrey Jellicoe Award in 2015<\/a>.<\/p>\n


Grupo de Dise\u00f1o Urbano<\/h2>\n

Schjetnan founded Grupo de Dise\u00f1o Urbano in 1977 with Jos\u00e9 Luis P\u00e9rez. Since then, GDU has built a wide-ranging body of work across Mexico and internationally.<\/p>\n

Their portfolio includes rehabilitation of historic parks, post-industrial landscape transformations, and large-scale urban open spaces. A recurring principle in Schjetnan\u2019s approach is clear: \u201cIf you want to develop a site or a new area, you have to start with a park.<\/p>\n