“True landscape design begins not with lines on paper, but with listening deeply to the territory – its soils, waters, histories, and living dynamics.
Our role shifts from imposing control to cultivating relationships: fostering the inherent resilience and 'wildness' of place through co-creation with natural processes.
We seek not just sustainable function, but vibrant, meaningful landscapes born from this partnership, nurturing futures where both human and non-human life can thrive together.”
Studio
Wilderness by design
In the era of the Anthropocene, facing profound climate and biodiversity challenges, we believe it's time to embrace the wild. Using landscapes as leverage, LLA actively explores and cultivates new relationships between human and non-human worlds, starting with a deep understanding of each territory. We see these places not as static settings, but as dynamic living systems full of opportunities to shape resilient, vibrant, and symbiotic futures.
Through landscape architecture and garden design, LLA delves into the intricate web of connections constituting place. It guides a fundamental shift away from human-centric control towards co-existence and co-creation, from fragmentation towards nurturing ecological continuity, from an imposed uniformity towards celebrating inherent uniqueness.
Transforming the physical environment goes hand-in-hand with inspiring new ways of seeing and interacting with Nature, aiming to shift perceptions, foster ecological understanding, research, and build the social and aesthetic acceptance vital for these living landscapes to thrive.
Working with natural dynamics is central to our practice, often expressed through a rewilding mindset across all scales. By fostering ecological processes and strengthening our cultural connection to the land, LLA shapes environments that are not only meaningful, resilient and alive, but that also actively engage with people, cultivating care. We aim to design landscapes that support better and wilder futures, deeply understood and embraced by the communities they sustain.
Projects
Mechelen, BE
Seoul, KR
Mantes-la-Jolie, FR
Chaumont-sur-Loire, FR
Issoudun, FR
Saint-Étienne, FR
Chaumont-sur-Loire, FR
Vierzon, FR
Contact
LLA
De Savornin Lohmanlaan 86 B013038 NN Rotterdam
The Netherlands
philippe@l-la.nl
+33 (0) 6 28 28 59 60
+31 (0) 6 13 71 63 73
KvK : 78297656
VAT : NL698566452B01
Projects
Design projects
Mechelen, BE
Issoudun, FR
Chaumont-sur-Loire, FR
Chaumont-sur-Loire, FR
Mantes-la-Jolie, FR
Saint-Étienne, FR
Vierzon, FR
Amsterdam, NL
Teaching - Tutoring
Challenging the notion of ‘Border’ though landscape design
Design studio (U)
2025 - Fontys Academy of Architecture
Location : Tilburg - Turnout (NL-BE)
Tutors : Philippe Allignet & Remco van der Togt
Groundbreaking
Thinking projects from the local soil, water and natural conditions.
Regional research & design studio (U & L)
2025 - Academie van Bouwkunst Amsterdam
Location : Metropolitan region of Amsterdam (NL)
Tutors : Philippe Allignet & Léa Soret
Partners : MRA, Gemeente Amsterdam
Looking at the city as a ressource as a way to foster post-growth, local urban and landscape dynamics.
Urban design studio (U)
2024 - Academie van Bouwkunst Rotterdam
Location : Schaarbeek-Vorming (BE)
Tutors : Philippe Allignet & Giacomo Gallo (design), Tslil Straus (Research), Jacopo Grilli (communication)
Partners : Brussel Perspective, BMA, Shipit
The nature of Nature
Questionning the meaning of what “Nature” is, its significance, use and many forms within our western society.
Research module (A, U & L)
2024 - Academie van Bouwkunst Amsterdam
Reimagining our relationship and impacts on environments using local conditions & sustainable processes.
Regional research & design studio (U & L)
2023 - Academie van Bouwkunst Amsterdam
Location : Province Noord-Brabant (NL)
Tutors : Philippe Allignet, Léa Soret, Robert Younger & Kinke Nijland
The image of the city
Investigating the many forms a city can take through ressearch methods, on-site investigations, research by design
Research module (A, U & L)Location : Amsterdam (NL)
2023 - Academie van Bouwkunst Amsterdam
Creating new ideals from fallen urban myths
Regional research & design studio (U & L)
2023 - Academie van Bouwkunst Amsterdam
Location : St-Étienne (FR)
Tutors : Léa Soret, Robert Younger & Philippe Allignet
Partner : City of St-Étienne
The Arboreal Soul
Celebrating South-Korean’s silent companion
Seoul - KR
Competition
Seoul International Garden Show 2026
Area
200m2
This garden creates a sacred grove magnifying the existing pine trees and celebrating its rich heritage to South Korean culture. It bridges nature and culture aesthetics with a strong naturist design setting the atmosphere of the place and a more cultural, man-made edge.
The grove scenarises the current rocky natural habitat of the pine with stone blocks while the ‘sacredness’ of the place is created by a discontinuous square in the periphery made of dressed stone walls and 4 pillars at every corner. This place is also inclusive and interactive, visitors of all age are invited to walk in under the pines, sit and contemplate, jump from stones to stones, get amazed by the plants, touch foliages, eat the Korean blueberries growing around, search for the insects and animals hidden in between the stones, grasses, shrubs...
De Borght park
Where heritage and nature meet
Mechelen - BE
Client
City of Mechelen
Team
Area
4 ha
More than just a landscaping update, our mission is to restore this historic landmark to its full glory. We aim to create a sanctuary that honors our past while embracing a greener, attractive and connected future for all residents.
The Parc de Borght is a cornerstone of our local identity, and preserving its historical soul is the primary driver of this project. We are dedicated to carefully restoring the site's landmarks, including the old walls and architectural features, to prevent degradation while ensuring they remain safe for visitors.
By integrating educational elements and heritage trails, we hope to create a living history experience where the stories of the past are woven into the landscape. Every new amenity introduced will be chosen to blend seamlessly with the park’s original aesthetic, ensuring a respectful harmony between the new infrastructure and the historic grounds.
While we cherish the past, this project is equally committed to the future of our local environment. The park is being reimagined as a vital ecological lung for the area. We are prioritizing the reintroduction of native tree and plant species that are resilient to climate variations, creating a robust and natural ecosystem.
This approach includes establishing protected wildlife refuges and ecological corridors to support birds, pollinators, and small fauna. Through sustainable "differentiated management," we will allow specific zones to remain wild to boost biodiversity, while carefully maintaining other areas for public enjoyment.
Ultimately, a park is defined by the people who bring it to life. Our goal is to redesign the parc de Borght into a welcoming place for families, seniors, and nature lovers alike. We are upgrading the network of paths and trails to ensure they are fully accessible to everyone, including individuals with reduced mobility and parents with strollers.
To encourage social interaction, high-quality, durable furniture will be installed throughout the grounds, creating inviting spots for relaxation and community gatherings. These improvements are paired with enhanced lighting and visibility measures to ensure the park remains a safe, peaceful, and comfortable environment for all.
Schifting blueprint
The Productive Remediation of the Dunlopillo Site
Mantes la jolie - FR
Context
Europan 18
competition proposal
Team
Despo Panayidou
Area
11 ha
Schifting blueprint envisions not an erasure of this past, but a «productive remediation»—a sober, responsible, and local revitalization that builds upon this unique legacy. The goal is to transform this site into a new destination founded on its identity, heritage, and existing resources; a place where productive development and quality of life merge to form a creative, accessible, active, and landscaped neighbourhood for all residents of Mantes-la-Jolie.
The architectural expression will celebrate the industrial character of the site. Reuse is our guiding principle. Steel structures from demolished halls will form the skeletons of new buildings. The facades will feature a mix of salvaged and new bricks, while recovered wood and stone will also find new life. New roof designs will pay homage to the iconic industrial sheds, bathing interiors in natural light and preserving the site’s unique atmosphere.
Ultimately, this project offers a rational, contextual, and responsible urban strategy. It is a remediation that reactivates the essential spirit of the site, transforming a polluted brownfield into a symbol of renewal; a vibrant, integrated and productive district that benefits the city of Mantes-la-Jolie and its inhabitants.
Recompose: We will preserve and magnify the site’s powerful industrial identity, weaving it into a new urban fabric that hybridises productive and residential functions to create a living, autonomous neighbourhood. The project will foster a vibrant economic ecosystem by offering a diverse range of spaces, from 50m² for artisans to 1500m² for established mid-size companies and by encouraging collaboration between the private sector, educational institutions like UVSQ, and local associations. The industrial heritage will be honored by conserving symbolic elements like tanks and overhead networks and tracing the outlines of former buildings in the new public spaces.
Reconnect: A key objective is to break the site’s isolation. We will integrate new connections, carefully managing logistical flows while prioritising soft mobility for residents and visitors. Logistics will be concentrated on the northern half of the site, while general traffic will be excluded from it and a 200-space underground car park will serve inhabitants, workers, and visitors. To ensure seamless integration with the city, bus lines D and G will be extended to the site, and the active mobility network will be connected to existing routes, promoting pathways along the Gassicourt lake. Critically, we will reconnect the site to its natural surroundings by creating two landscaped, ecological corridors that link the adjacent lakes.
Remediate: Our approach is rooted in a circular and integrated process of transformation. This begins with a deep commitment to the environment by managing polluted soils on-site through bioremediation techniques. Excavated earth will be sorted, clean soil revitalised for new landscaping and contaminated soil treated and reused. This principle of reuse extends to the buildings themselves; materials from deconstructed structures will be salvaged and incorporated into new constructions, managed from a central workshop in the renovated «Usine des Communs.»