Oehme van Sweden and Associates

What Oehme van Sweden and Associates does

Oehme van Sweden and Associates (OvS) is a privately held professional services firm of landscape architects, horticulturists, and designers founded in 1975 by Wolfgang Oehme (1930-2011) and James van Sweden (1935-2013). Headquartered in Washington, DC, with 11-50 employees, the firm is credited with founding the "New American Garden" style of landscape architecture — a design language that balances horticultural complexity (large swaths of grasses, layered perennials) with architectural craftsmanship (paths, terraces, walls, arbors) and is applied across scales from ten-foot-square urban gardens to 10,000-acre expanses.

OvS delivers project-based landscape architecture services spanning site analysis, master planning, design development, construction documentation, and construction administration. Its core service offerings include Landscape Architecture Services, Landscape Master Planning, Botanic Gardens and Arboreta design, Sculpture Parks and Arts Environments, Historic Landscape Preservation, and Sustainable Water Management. Work is organized around four customer segments: Federal/Government (National WWII Memorial, MLK Jr. National Memorial, White House Rose Garden, Korean War Veterans Memorial Wall of Remembrance, Federal Reserve Virginia Avenue Gardens, Smithsonian National Zoo, Allentown Parks), High-End Residential (coastal estates across Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, Newport, Greenwich; Virginia horse country; urban residences), Cultural/Institutional (Chicago Botanic Garden, New York Botanical Garden Native Plant Garden, American Museum in Britain, Tippet Rise Art Center), and Commercial/Development (JBG Smith, Lowe Enterprises).

The firm monetizes through custom, project-based professional services fees determined by scope, complexity, scale, and phase, typically structured as multi-year contracts. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales: competitive bidding for federal work (overseen by the National Park Service, NCPC, and Commission of Fine Arts), direct engagement for institutional and cultural clients based on reputation and fit, and referrals for high-net-worth residential commissions. OvS maintains thought leadership through six published books (most recently "Beyond Bold" in 2023), principal speaking engagements, and an extensive portfolio of industry awards including the 2014 ASLA Landscape Architecture Firm Award — the highest honor the American Society of Landscape Architects bestows on a firm. Leadership is provided by CEO/Director Eric D. Groft, FASLA, CFO Eva Lin, and Principals Sara Downing, Stacilyn Feldman, Lili Herrera, Robert Johnson, and Justin Maglione, with Director Emeritus Sheila Brady, FASLA, and Principal Lisa Delplace, FASLA. The firm operates without disclosed private equity, venture capital, or parent company involvement.

Name

Oehme van Sweden and Associates

Legal name

Oehme, van Sweden & Associates, Inc.

Website

https://ovsla.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1975

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Oehme van Sweden and Associates (OvS) is a Washington, DC-based landscape architecture firm founded in 1975, known for the New American Garden style. It serves federal, high-end residential, cultural/institutional, and commercial clients across the U.S. and internationally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations

Revenue model

1. Landscape Architecture Design Services: Project-based professional services for landscape master planning and design, including site analysis, master planning, design development, construction documentation, and construction administration services for residential, institutional, federal, and commercial projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Oehme van Sweden and Associates is a landscape architecture firm that provides master planning, site design, and garden design services. It serves residential, institutional, federal, and cultural clients, working in the "New American Garden" naturalistic style developed by its founders.

Product overview

Oehme, van Sweden | OvS is a landscape architecture firm offering design services through a unified practice centered on their signature New American Garden style. The firm provides residential landscape design, public and civic spaces, botanic gardens, sculpture parks, and landscape master planning services. Their portfolio spans national memorials, presidential gardens, coastal estates, and international projects. The firm has published multiple books documenting their design philosophy and approach.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Landscape Master Planning Master planning services for campuses, parks, and large sites, including site analysis, conceptual design, and long-range landscape frameworks for institutional, federal, cultural, and residential clients.
• Residential Landscape Design Custom design of private gardens and estate landscapes using the firm's naturalistic "New American Garden" planting approach.
• Institutional & Cultural Site Design Site and landscape design for institutional and cultural projects, including campuses, museums, and public-facing civic landscapes.
• Federal Landscape Design Landscape architecture for federal clients, including memorial landscapes and public-sector grounds.

Quantifiable outcome

• 2014 ASLA Landscape Architecture Firm Award - highest honor bestowed on a firm by American Society of Landscape Architects
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered notable and core.

• M. Paul Friedberg & PartnersnotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Pershing Park transformation in Washington DC, working with the Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation. OvS joined with leading modernist landscape architect M. Paul Friedberg to create an intimate sanctuary in downtown DC.
• Chicago Botanic GardencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMultiple garden commissions including the Great Basin gardens and other installations at the Chicago Botanic Garden, one of the largest botanical gardens in the United States.
• ROMA Design GroupcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPartnered as Designer of Record for Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial, with OvS serving as Landscape Architect of Record for this first memorial on National Mall dedicated to an African American.
• McKissack & McKissackcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitect of Record partnership for Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial project.
• Leo A. DalynotableImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitect of Record for The National World War II Memorial project.
• ARUPnotableImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAcoustical engineer for Tippet Rise Art Center project in Fishtail, Montana.
• Gunnstock Timber FramesnotableImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitect for Tippet Rise Art Center performing arts and sculpture park.
• H3 Hardy Collaboration ArchitecturecoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture firm for multiple pavilions at New York Botanical Garden's Native Plant Garden, serving as outdoor classroom for school groups.
• Torti Gallas and COOKFOX ArchitectsnotableImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture partners for The Grace and Reva towers project in Arlington, VA.
• Beyer Blinder BellecoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerArchitecture firm for Rubell Museum and Gallery 64 redevelopment, historic school renovation with new c-shaped LEED Platinum residential tower.
• The Cultural Landscape FoundationnotableStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in advocacy for preservation of Pershing Park, urging National Park Service to include the park in National Register of Historic Places.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Peers

• Oehme, van Sweden | OvS peer — Piet Oudolf (conceptual style):

Direct peers

• Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates: Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates is a Brooklyn-based landscape architecture firm known for Brooklyn Bridge Park and major public-realm commissions. Directly comparable in scale, public park / campus specialization, and thought leadership.
• Reed Hilderbrand: Reed Hilderbrand is a Cambridge, MA-based landscape architecture firm specializing in cultural institutions, campuses, and estates. Highly comparable to OvS in the institutional and estate segment, scale, and east-coast federal project work.
• Andropogon Associates: Andropogon Associates is a Philadelphia-based ecological landscape architecture firm specializing in sustainable, ecologically driven design. Comparable in scale and east-coast institutional / campus focus, with strong emphasis on natural systems integration.
• LandArc (Nelson Byrd Woltz): Nelson Byrd Woltz is a Charlottesville, VA-based landscape architecture firm known for cultural landscapes, public gardens, and large-scale master plans. Highly comparable in the cultural-institutional, public garden, and east-coast segments where OvS is active.
• OLIN: OLIN is a Philadelphia-based landscape architecture, urban design, and planning firm of comparable size serving high-profile institutional, civic, and private clients. Directly comparable to OvS in scale, project types (memorials, botanic gardens, urban redevelopments), and design-led positioning.
• SWA Group: SWA Group is a landscape architecture, planning, and urban design firm with a national practice covering parks, campuses, and waterfronts. Comparable in project type, scale, and emphasis on landscape as a design discipline.

Emerging players

• Piet Oudolf: Piet Oudolf is a Dutch garden designer whose naturalistic perennial planting style is closely related to OvS's New American Garden aesthetic. Comparable in design philosophy and horticultural leadership, though operating as a planting designer rather than full landscape architecture firm.

Broad incumbents

• Sasaki: Sasaki is a large multidisciplinary design firm with a significant landscape architecture practice covering campuses, urban districts, and parks. A broader incumbent that competes with OvS for institutional and developer-led master planning commissions.
• HOK (now part of Populous): Global architecture and design firm with a sizable landscape architecture practice serving federal, institutional, and commercial clients. Competes with OvS for federal and large institutional commissions but offers a much broader service portfolio.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/OehmevanSweden
• Facebookfacebook.com/OehmevanSweden

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Oehme van Sweden and Associates