Architects & Contractors Project Study
Architects & Contractors Project Study
Chicago Residence
Existing Conditions/Challenges
- Convert an unused city lot into a garden oasis from the noise, buildings, and stress of the city.
- Connect the adjacent property with a new home being constructed in order to create an inviting outdoor garden, entertaining space, outdoor kitchen.
- Celebrate the urban surroundings, details, and neighborhood while avoiding a walled in and fenced compound.
- Develop a clear and detailed vocabulary of design elements, materials and textures that unify the strong contemporary architecture of the residence.
- Soften the strong vertical elements that create the edges of the garden, including neighboring homes, power lines and poles, in order to create a comfortable and inviting sense of place.
Design Process/Construction Solutions
- Created a link between home and garden elevation in a creative and functional manner, with over 4’ grade change in width and 5’ in length, through a series of graceful step transitions planting areas and walls of brick and black granite that physically relate to the strong proportions and materials of existing architecture.
- Developed a series of uniquely proportioned outdoor rooms that were located on varying elevations, offering unique gathering spaces, sense of enclosure, and views to and from the home and into the new garden.
- Created an urban oasis that offers privacy and enclosure while focusing on visual and physical connections throughout the garden: vistas, intriguing paths, subtle focal points and unique destinations to be explored and enjoyed.
- Used a planting palette, focused on urban tolerant plants, seasonal interest, unique sculpture character, and proper size and shape to complement the design while softening architectural edges.
- Created custom water fountain and water rill that took advantage of the grade change and long linear garden spaces. The water feature cascades over walls, scuppers and basins toning down the city life surrounding the garden, along with offering a continuous integrated element into several garden rooms, spilling, rippling and reflecting.
- Installed a low ‘fence’ created by a steel ‘I’ beam and combined with plantings to separate the garden from the street.
- Used paving materials and patterns to add texture, unify and complement the simple color palette of the home.
Results
- Converted a sloping and unused urban lot into a modern contemporary garden that uniquely solved and incorporated the grade change into a visually pleasing and functional garden, which connected the client’s home to the garden.
- Unified the unique and contemporary architectural and materials of the residence into the garden creating a seamless and fluid connection of spaces and transitions.
- Incorporated urban tolerant plant material and water to soften and mitigate some of the unwelcome elements of city life that surrounds the garden.
- Developed a clear site plan that incorporated simple geometric shapes and forms, in the ground plan, vertical plan and overhead canopy, to create a welcome, spatially comfortable, well proportioned and inviting garden spaces.
- Designed a garden that offers privacy and sense of enclosure for the client and their guest, while maintaining a connection with the neighborhood and streetscape encouraging neighbors and passers by to enjoy the garden.
