Design is our focus.

Founded in 1993, Surface 678 is a landscape architecture firm dedicated to design excellence and the integration of natural systems and craft into our work. It is our belief that great public spaces allow both human culture and ecological health to thrive. Through meaningful inquiry and collaboration, our goal is to create iconic landscapes that reflect and inspire communities, giving shape to a more sustainable and equitable future.

Our ethos is wrapped in our name—Surface 678. Surface is where users perceive the design benefits expressed by our ideas. Surface becomes the visual and cultural expression of the landscapes’ beauty and function, serving the needs of the user, providing for social interaction, and reflecting and enhancing the sites natural and built composition. 678 represents a horticultural zone map region we connect to a similar set of cultural and physical contextual complexities like people, temperature, rainfall, soils, climate, vegetation, and horticulture. To that end, Surface 678 is committed to creating iconic landscapes throughout the southeastern United States—focused upon horticultural zones 6, 7, and 8.

Each of our designs begins with a generative idea that shapes the foundation of our concept expresses itself throughout the design. Idea and expression create a sense of place and relevance in our work. It is our role as designer to orchestrate the functional and technical aspects of a project that respects their effectiveness, while holding true to the idea. The result is distinctive and sustainable landscapes that satisfy residents, attract visitors, enrich working lives, and encourage communities to take full advantage of their place.

Along with design excellence, a major hallmark of our firm is our emphasis on collaboration and communication. We achieve successful design through open, honest, and positive design collaboration among all parties. The collective intelligence derived from this communication presents itself as a satisfying and meaningful combination of architecture, landscape, and community.