Ann Komara BA, MLA, M Arch History
Professor, Associate Dean of the College of Architecture and Planning
- Landscape Architecture Department (CAP)
Professor Ann Komara is the Associate Dean for the College of Architecture and Planning at CU Denver. Professor Komara holds a BA in Classical Studies (Penn State), a Master of Landscape Architecture, and a Master of Architectural History (both from the University of Virginia). She chaired the Department of Landscape Architecture (2009-19) and has served on national award and review committees for the National Endowment for the Humanities, DOCOMOMO, Society of Architectural Historians, and the Landscape Architecture Accrediting Board. Ann’s teaching and research focus on landscape architecture history and theory and design. Her scholarship on urban landscapes of Second Empire Paris has been supported by the Graham Foundation, Camargo Foundation, and Dumbarton Oaks (2019-20 Fellow in Garden & Landscape Studies). She held a Fulbright Teaching and Research Fellowship in Finland and has led numerous study abroad programs in Finland and France.
Professor Komara's publications include recent articles on the Parc des Buttes Chaumont, and on field work for cultural landscape documentation. She published the award-winning book Lawrence Halprin’s Skyline Park in 2012, and papers on Civilian Conservation Corps ANF-1, a student-engaged project that won the 2014 HALS Documentation Award from the National Park Service. These projects reflect the high caliber of her collaborative work with CAP students in landscape documentation and cultural landscapes. Professor Komara’s recent seminar “Water in the West” guided students to explore issues surrounding water in our semi-arid climate and study the cultural and historical patterns and practices and the causes and effects of systemic inequality in the distribution and use of water. In Spring 2023 she led MLA Studio 3 to produce entries for the Museum of Outdoor Art’s national competition “Land Art: Celestial Architecture”, and a studio team received First Place for their winning entry, “Listen to the Moon”. Ann’s courses include a history of landscape architecture, design studios, advanced topics seminars, and the popular “Introduction to Landscape Architecture” for non-majors.
Areas of Expertise
Landscape architecture design, history and theory; urban studies; Second Empire Paris urban parks and gardens; cultural landscapes (designed and vernacular); water in the semi-arid west and relationship with plants and design; women in design; travel and Study Abroad programs
Education, Licensure & Certifications
DEGREES HELD
- Bachelor of Arts Classical Studies, Pennsylvania State University
- Master of Landscape Architecture, University of Virginia
- Master of Architectural History, University of Virginia
Awards
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
2022 | University of Colorado Denver Campus Award: Excellence in Faculty Mentoring
2019-20 | Fellow in Residence, Garden and Landscape Studies, Dumbarton Oaks, Trustees for Harvard University
2015 | Research Fellow, Camargo Foundation, Cassis, France.
2015 | College of Architecture and Planning - Excellence in Research Award
2014 | 1st Place - 2014 NPS HALS Challenge: Documentation of a New Deal Era Landscape. HALS PA-025: Allegheny National Forest, CCC Camp ANF-1, PA. [with students]
2008 | Fulbright CIES Research and Teaching Fellowship: Helsinki University of Technology
2004 | Dumbarton Oaks Summer Research Fellowship
2003 | Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in the Fine Arts – Research Award recipient for Parc des Buttes Chaumont, Paris
2000 | College of Architecture and Planning- Excellence in Teaching Award
EXTERNAL RESEARCH GRANTS
2024 | National Park Service CESU Grant $250,000. Cultural Landscape Inventory and Report, Camp Amache, Granada, Colorado. [with students]
2017 | Fee-for-service Funding: Arrow, CO - Cultural Landscape Study. $10,000. [with students]
2011 | National Park Service Rocky Mountain CESU Grant $20,000. “Development of Cultural/Natural Landscape Management Plan for the Utility Area of Rocky Mountain National Park” [with students]
2007 | Colorado State Historical Fund Grant $28,980. For Lawrence Halprin’s Skyline Park [with students]
2005 | National Park Service Rocky Mountain CESU Grant $10,000. “Images of Rocky Mountain National Park: Reception and Place”
RECOGNITION OF WORK BY OTHERS
2014 | Ann Komara and CU Denver MLA Studio 5 students. 1st Place - 2014 NPS HALS Challenge: Documentation of a New Deal Era Landscape. HALS PA-025: Allegheny National Forest, CCC Camp ANF-1, Duhring, PA.
2013 | American Association for State and Local History National [AASLH] “Award of Merit for a Publication” - Lawrence Halprin’s Skyline Park.
2007 | Colorado Historical Society Stephen Hart Award for Excellence in Preservation for “Skyline Park Historic American Landscapes Survey”
Affiliations
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
Society of Architectural Historians / Vice-president, Landscape History Chapter
American Society of Landscape Architects
Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture
DOCOMOMO
Colorado Preservation, Inc.