Aidan C. AckermanAssistant Professor
333 Marshall Hall
1 Forestry Drive
Syracuse, NY 13210
315-470-6545 | 315-470-6544
acackerm@esf.edu
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I work on projects which investigate the agency of digital tools in landscape architecture analysis and design, specifically the simulation and visualization of natural phenomena. I am curious about whether we can predict how designs will change over time, how natural systems will develop, and how the earth and our built environment will adapt to changing climates. I wonder about the ways that software can enable us to become better landscape architects, to visualize new environments and create transformative virtual and real settings. Where will digital software be in 30 years? We can't possibly know, but we can equip ourselves to nimbly adapt to the new digital tools that come our way. We might even invent our own tools. I teach students to use 3D modeling, parametric and algorithmic modeling, rendering, animation, GIS, BIM, and digital fabrication in their design work, and I research new ways of using digital technology to model and simulate landscapes. My favorite digital tools are those that allow us to connect with those aspects of landscape architecture which are grounded in process and time and communicate with each other.
Before joining the faculty at ESF, I was the Director of Digital Media and Faculty in The School of Landscape Architecture at Boston Architectural College. I've worked as part of the Research Computing Environment at The Harvard/MIT Data Center, have twice been named a Research Fellow by the Landscape Architecture Foundation, and was a Teaching Fellow at Harvard University. I also have an independent computation design and visualization practice, developing models and graphics for international firms within the disciplines of landscape architecture, architecture, interior design, graphic and industrial design. My love of computing is built on six years of experience in information technology, beginning as a hardware technician and advancing over several years to become a Senior Systems Engineer in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Education
Harvard University Graduate School of Design - MLA, 2011
New York State College of Ceramics, Alfred University, - BFA, 2002
Teaching Experience
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry (present)
Boston Architectural College, Boston, MA (2012-2018)
Harvard Graduate School of Design (2009-2011, teaching fellow)
ArtScience Labs (2011-2013, design mentor)
Courses Taught
LSA 300/500 Digital Methods & Graphics 1
LSA 326 Landscape Architecture Studio 1
LSA 496/696 Modeling & Visualization of Landscape Processes
Peer-Reviewed Publications
Ackerman, A., Cave, J., Lin, C.-Y., & Stillwell, K. (2019). Computational Modeling for Climate Change: Simulating and Visualizing a Resilient Landscape Architecture Design Approach. International Journal of Architectural Computing, 17(2), 125–147. https://doi.org/10.1177/1478077119849659
Ackerman, A., Cave, J., & Stillwell, K. (2019). Computation and Visualization of Coastal Sea Level Rise Mitigation Strategies: Digital Applications of Scientific Data to Formulate Design Workflows for Climate Change. Journal of Digital Landscape Architecture, 10-20.
Ackerman, A., & Cave, J. (2019). Computational Modeling for Climate Change: Three-Dimensional CAD Visualization of Coastal Storm Impacts on Shoreline Erosion. Computer-Aided Design and Applications, 16(6), 1034-1045. https://doi.org/10.14733/cadaps.2019.1034-1045
Ackerman, Aidan C; Cave, J. (2018). Modeling Coastal Sedimentation and Erosion for Design Applications Within the Fields of Landscape Architecture and Architecture. In: Gobster, Paul H.; Smardon, Richard C., eds. 2018. Visual Resource Stewardship Conference Proceedings: Landscape and Seascape Management in a Time of Change. Gen. Tech. Rep. NRS-P-183. Newtown Square, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northern Research Station. 279 p. https://doi.org/10.2737/NRS-GTR-P-183
Ackerman, A. & Glekas, E., (2017). Digital Capture and Fabrication Tools for Interpretation of Historic Sites. ISPRS Annals of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, IV-2-W2, 107-114, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-annals-IV-2-W2-107-2017, 2017
Hammer, S. and Ackerman, A., (2015). Progress and Pitfalls in Community Mapping: Behaviors, Cognitions, and New Directions. Cities People Places: An International Journal on Urban Environments, 1(1), pp.19–31. http://doi.org/10.4038/cpp.v1i1.1
Ackerman, A. and Lundell Garver, B. (2015). Social Media as a Visualization Tool: Mapping the Urban Landscape. Landscape Research Record, Vol. 4, Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture. pp.2-9.
Ackerman, A., Bellalta, M., and McGonagle, J. (2013). Watch Factory, Phases 1 and 2. Landscape Performance Series. Landscape Architecture Foundation. https://doi.org/10.31353/cs0440
Ackerman, A., Bellalta, M., and McGonagle, J. (2013). Erie Street Plaza. Landscape Performance Series. Landscape Architecture Foundation. https://doi.org/10.31353/cs0430
Other Publications
Ackerman, Aidan. “The BIM That Binds.” Landscape Architecture Magazine, June 2019: 50-60. Print.
Research and Fellowships
2019 Case Study Investigation (CSI), Research Fellow
Case Studies: Block Island Wind Farm, New Shoreham, RI & Hardscrabble Wind Farm, Fairfield, NY
The Landscape Architecture Foundation, Washington, DC
2019 ESF Discovery Challenge Seed Grant, Core Team Member
Pathways to a Net-Zero Carbon Future: Landscape Design for Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Mitigation
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY
2019 ESF Discovery Challenge Seed Grant, Core Team Member
Mass Timber Construction
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY
2019 Designing the Parks Cultural Resources Diversity Internship Program, Senior Research Scientist
Graphics Modeling for Statue of Liberty National Monument
Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation, Boston, MA & the U.S National Park Service
2017 Educational Research Fund Grant, Recipient
Student-Defined Curriculum and a Competency-Based Approach to Learning
Board of Trustees, Boston Architectural College, Boston, MA
2014 Landscape Performance Education Grant, Recipient
Landscape Performance Integration Within the Landscape Architecture Design Studio
The Landscape Architecture Foundation, Washington, DC
2013 Case Study Investigation (CSI), Research Fellow
Case Studies: Waltham Watch Factory, Waltham, MA & Erie Street Plaza, Milwaukee, WI
The Landscape Architecture Foundation, Washington, DC
