STUDIO
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Roland Crighton
Principal
From an early age, Roland had a love for sketching and drawing — a creative instinct that would one day evolve into a career shaping some of the world’s most exclusive landscapes. What began as an artistic curiosity became a lifelong pursuit of blending art, architecture, and nature — a passion ignited the day he discovered the field of landscape architecture at university.
For over two decades, Roland has been entrusted with designing warm-weather resort destinations, private estate gardens, and luxury hospitality environments across Hawaii, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Asia. His portfolio includes private resort communities, beach clubs, and five-star hotels where the outdoor spaces become the defining feature of the guest experience.
Known for his mastery of tropical planting design and deep understanding of local construction practices, Roland’s work is rooted in honoring site and context — ensuring each landscape feels authentic, timeless, and inseparable from its surroundings. His collaborations with leading architects, developers, and hospitality brands have produced landscapes that are as strategically valuable as they are visually stunning.
Roland is licensed in California, Colorado, and Hawaii, and continues to set the standard for luxury resort and estate landscapes that balance artistry, cultural narrative, and environmental integrity.
Matt Duncan
Senior Landscape Architect
Matt is a registered Landscape Architect in the State of Colorado with more than 25 years of professional experience in landscape architecture. Having grown up as an “army brat” and relocated frequently across several states, he developed an early sense of resiliency, adaptability, and cultural awareness. His path to the profession began in Manhattan, Kansas, where he spent his final years of high school before attending Kansas State University. After initially studying computer science, a visit to the College of Architecture, Planning and Design introduced him to hand-drawn site plan renderings and inspired his transition into landscape architecture.
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Throughout his career, Matt has built deep design, technical, and management experience across a wide range of project types and scales. His early work included creative planning and site design within multidisciplinary teams for medium- to large-scale medical offices and hospitals, higher education, senior living, and multi-unit residential projects. He has since expanded his role to include management and oversight of urban streetscapes and plazas, corporate and institutional campuses, and resort and hospitality environments. Most recently, he has served as project manager on several large and complex projects, working closely with clients and stakeholders to deliver creative, buildable solutions within challenging schedules and project constraints.
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Matt is highly collaborative and places strong emphasis on design integrity, client needs, quality control, and team mentorship. He actively supports the QA/QC process and enjoys guiding younger landscape designers as they grow in the profession. His design interests center on creating spaces that enrich people’s lives, bring moments of delight, and balance beauty with functionality.
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Based in Denver, you’ll find Matt spending time outside of work in the Colorado mountains camping, hiking, and off-roading, picking up the dreaded 10 pin during bowling league, and dabbling in homebrewing in pursuit of the perfect IPA.
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Daniel Grattan
Associate Landscape Designer
Daniel grew up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains, where he knew from a young age that he wanted to pursue a career working with impactful landscapes. After completing his Bachelor's degree in Environmental Science at St. Olaf College, Daniel moved back to the foothills, where he worked for two years as an environmental scientist. Soon, he realized that he wanted to combine his knowledge of the environment with his passion for design, which led him to move to Denver, CO, to study Landscape Architecture. After graduating with a Master's in Landscape Architecture, Daniel joined Forma Design Partners in 2023.
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Throughout his graduate studies, Daniel focused on creating landscape designs that pushed the boundaries of the field. His work included unique designs such as solar eclipse land art in the Utah Salt Flats, foodscapes on Mars, vertical gardens, and defensible spaces.
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As a new designer, Daniel's dedication and fresh ideas strengthen the mission of Forma Design Partners.
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APPROACH
At Forma Design Partners, we create outdoor spaces that go beyond the expected. While we offer sustainable, thoughtful design, we seek out solutions that surprise and engage the senses. Our work harmonizes with the natural environment and architecture, creating immersive experiences at every turn.
We don’t adhere to a signature style. Instead, we honor the unique character of each project, respecting the culture, climate, and resources of the site. Our commitment is to create artistic, memorable spaces that leave a lasting impression.
SERVICES
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
We offer a wide range of design services for a variety of project types, from small-scale intimate gardens to major site development projects. Our services include concept and schematic design through construction documents and construction observation.​​
RESORT MASTER PLANNING
Our master planning services will examine multiple land use opportunities for resort properties in a variety of destinations to best understand the site’s full potential.
HOSPITALITY DESIGN
Our team specializes in designing a variety of hospitality environments, from boutique hotels to large scale destination properties. We place a strong emphasis on the communication of ideas in order to establish a collaborative design process and build a productive relationship with the project team.
SITE PLANNING
We engage with the design team at the start of a project to assist in siting the buildings and amenities. We provide a wide variety of environmental assessments to understand how to best utilize the site and minimize the impact of the development on its natural features and systems.
RENOVATION AND RESTORATION
Our team is experienced in the renovation and restoration of resort and hotel properties that often coincides with new ownership or the repositioning of an existing property. We can provide landscape assessments and phasing plans to assist the client in understanding the level of investment that will work within their capital budget.
DESIGN CHARRETTE
The design charrette is a high-intensity collaborative process set within the context of the site where conceptual ideas are rapidly exchanged by the project team with the goal of establishing a shared vision for the project
PROJECT VISIONING
Our team will assist the client in creating visual material that captures the essence of the project for the purpose of presenting their vision to stake holders, potential investors, or prospective buyers.