J. B. Jackson

John Brinckerhoff Jackson (1909, Dinard, France - 1996) was a writer, publisher, instructor, and sketch artist in landscape design. Herbert Muschamp, New York Times architecture critic, stated that J.B. Jackson was “America’s greatest living writer on the forces that have shaped the land this nation occupies.” He was influential in broadening the perspective on the “vernacular” landscape.

Early life

Born in France to American parents, Jackson spent many of his formative years in schools in Washington, D.C. as well as in Europe. He would later draw upon these travels in his writings and sketches. In 1923 he attended school in Switzerland and it was here that he learned to speak both French and German. He appreciated the mountains, meadows and forests in this beautiful country. At this young age he was already acquiring a respect for diversity in culture and landscape. He attended preparatory schools in New England and spent summers on his uncle’s farm in New Mexico.

Education and early writings

Jackson’s experiences in college were influential in his approach to the shaping of the landscape. He attended the Experimental College of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Here he was introduced to the writings of two contemporary social critics. He gained insight into architecture and planning from the writings of Lewis Mumford and was fascinated by Oswald Spengler’s revelation in "Decline of the West" that “landscapes reflected the culture of the people that were living there…”

In 1929 Jackson attended Harvard for three years. His instructor, Irving Babbitt, was influential in Jackson’s opposition to modernism. His taste for Baroque style and history began to blossom at this time. He believed that the zest of the Baroque style was the essence of the connection between humankind and nature. While attending Harvard, Jackson wrote articles for the Harvard Advocate. His career of writing about what truly makes up the landscape began here.

Following his graduation at Harvard, Jackson tried courses in architecture, writing, and drawing. Each would contribute later in life in writing articles for his magazine. He did some wandering through Europe in 1934 to 1935 studying Baroque style. While in Europe, Jackson began to write some articles on Nazism and published them in the American Review and Harper's. His interest in politics began to show in his works. In 1938, the fiction book "Saints in Summertime" was published. The book revealed the infiltration of Nazism and the soldiers’ attraction to energy emanating from power.

Military service

After trying his hand at ranching in New Mexico, he enlisted in the army, in 1940. As an officer during war he studied books to gain insight on the geography of the location. He deciphered code, studied maps, and learned the terrain. He read books by French geographers—Pierre Deffontaines, Paul Vidal de la Blache, and Albert Demangeon. It was at this time that his interpretation that the shaping and devastation of the landscape came from the necessities for human existence. Jackson believed that human history brought about human geography. The landscape was simply humankind’s effort to "recreate heaven on earth". As the war ended, Jackson began to contemplate publishing a magazine of geography.

"Landscape" magazine

In the spring of 1951, "Landscape" was published. Jackson remained as editor until 1968. In his opening essay "The Need of Being Versed in Country Things" Jackson states that "It is from the air that the true relationship between the natural and the human landscape is first clearly revealed. The peaks and canyons lose much of their impressiveness when seen from above. What catches our eye and arouses our interest is not the sandy washes and the naked rocks, but the evidences of man." His writings allowed him to raise questions and present controversial statements especially in reference to humans and their role in shaping the landscape. Jackson’s works have been published in seven other books along with "A Sense of Place, a Sense of Time" which won the 1995 PEN prize for essays.

Teaching

Jackson was also influential in many students’ lives. He taught landscape history courses as adjunct professor at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design as well as at the College of Environmental Design and the Department of Geography at the University of California, Berkeley. He finished teaching in the late 1970s and then went on to give lectures especially those pertaining to urban issues. Jackson states that “We are not spectators; all human landscape is not a work of art.” He felt strongly that the purpose of landscape is to provide a place for living and working and leisure.

The Association of American Geographers established a Jackson Prize, to "reward American geographers who write books about the United States which convey the insights of professional geography in language that is interesting and attractive to a lay audience." [http://www.aag.org/Grantsawards/Jacksonprize.html]

Quotes

""The older I grow and the longer I look at landscapes and seek to understand them, the more convinced I am that their beauty is not simply an aspect but their very essence and that that beauty derives from the human presence."

"Let us hope that the merits and charm of the highway strip are not so obscure but they will be accepted by a wider public."

Published works

Jackson's published works include:

* "Landscapes: Selected Writings of J. B. Jackson" (1970)
* "American Space: The Centennial Years, 1865-1876" (1972)
* "The Interpretation of Ordinary Landscapes: Geographical Essays" edited with D. W. Meinig (1979)
* "The Necessity for Ruins and Other Topics" (1980)
* "Discovering the Vernacular Landscape" (1984)
* "A Sense of Place, a Sense of Time" (1994)
* "Landscape in Sight: Looking at America" (1999)

References

*Jackson, J. B. "Landscape in Sight: Looking at America" (Horowitz, H.L., Ed.), Yale University Press, 1999