Daniel Gillespie

About Daniel Gillespie 

I’ve grown up in and around Sydney, and I’ve been really drawn to the natural beauty of our national parks and beaches. There’s not much I love more than a bushwalk through a national park down to a gorgeous secret beach on a sunny summer’s day. I feel incredibly grateful to be able to call this place home.

I completed a Bachelor of Landscape Architecture with Honours at UTS, graduating at the end of 2023.

Why Landscape Architecture? 

I was attracted to the wide scale of thinking landscape architecture demands. Focusing on the most intimate details and finishes in tandem to broad, ecological, social, or climactic systems means you need to be in touch and well researched in your work. The possibility to be able to have a direct impact on someone’s day-to-day, and create a new experience for them, whilst also having a positive impact on the world was really inspiring to me.

Funnily enough I enrolled with the intention of changing degrees to Architecture, however once I was in the degree I enjoyed it far too much to change. I found the scope of thinking, having to shift from the incredibly detailed to a much wider, systems focus incredibly exciting for what I could create. Being in touch with everything existing on a site, such as history, culture, ecology, climate, and people before design even begins was a very intriguing prospect. I think your designs as a landscape architect have a higher chance of being open and beneficial to everyone in society, broadening the opportunity to have a positive impact.

Why UTS? 

The academics and tutors at UTS are advancing Landscape Architecture as a discipline. Being taught by these people inspired me to think more critically and creatively in all my pursuits. The culture of inclusion and peer-to-peer learning in the classroom had a positive impact on my choice. I was also drawn by the city campus with its stunning buildings and convenient location, including facilities available to students such as laser cutters, 3D printers and technical workshops.

I had an amazing time at UTS. I found the DAB building a real creative inspiration. Being around all these talented students pushed me to be more creative within my own designs, consider completely different ways of thinking and just to make more friends! As someone who started during COVID-19, a return to face-to-face learning was amazingly refreshing and I noticed a drastic increase in my knowledge from learning off my peers, which was something UTS fostered amazingly. 

I was fortunate enough to be offered a role as a student Landscape Architect at Gallagher Studio. I found this opportunity after working with Libby Gallagher, Director of Gallagher Studio, at UTS and am forever grateful for the amazing experience I got at her studio. That opportunity has and will form who I am as a professional and a person.

I visited Barcelona and Catalunya in 2019 on a Global Study Tour with School of Architecture Lecturer, Louisa King. This was a highlight of my time at UTS. Expanding my horizons not just as a student but as a traveller was such an experience. We shared meals and drinks across 20 of us and formed close friendships which have outlasted my degree.

What’s Next 

I am working at Hassell as a Graduate Landscape Architect. My day begins with a walk to the gorgeous office at the heritage Walsh Bay Wharfs. I get to work on a variety of projects, from large infrastructural connections to the pedestrianisation of city streets. We work with a variety of experts and contractors on our projects, but a base for every design comes from consultation and working alongside Indigenous designers and knowledge holders, which is a crucial and critical step in design. One of the most empowering parts of being a landscape architect is the ability to return to past work and see your choices and designs being used and enjoyed by members of the public.

I don’t know what my future holds, I would love to extend my knowledge in a place other than Sydney, expanding upon what I have learnt here. The opportunity to connect to a culture and identity which is far removed from my own is something I am intensely fascinated by. I would also love to continue my education, and I believe that constant learning is the key to feeling fulfilled and motivated.

I think the best advice I got given was give it a shot and give it 100%. No matter what happens, as long as you are trying your hardest, you can always be proud of your efforts and know that the results could not have changed any more. UTS is a great institution to study, they support, empower and enable any opportunity you want, all you have to do is take it.