Hacienda - 园林吧

This sculptural gardenoverlookingtheSan Francisco Bayreflects the vision of passionate art collectorswhose personal artisticvisionincludes the idea of the landscape being experienced and enhanced through play and exploration. As a result, the garden incorporates distinct spaces that weave together architecture and landscape,providing places for reflection, play, and discovery.

At the entrance, a folding deck projects from thehouse, merging thebuildingwith a landscape of magnolias, grasses, and ferns. The deck’s warping planes create a threshold for the visitor, highlighting the relationship between the existing ground plane of the house and the sudden change of the surrounding topography. Beyond the deck,acobbled pathway connects with a shade garden, creating a sense of calm and intimacy around the main entrance.

photo Floto Warner

photo Marion Brenner

Children’s play areasare interspersed throughoutthe site, starting at the entrance wherethe folding doubles as a climbing wall. Threeplayfully sculpted green moundsoffera wonderland of discovery and play spaces:“Rabbit Hole Hill”encourageschildren to drop balls into tubes of various sizes, without knowing where they will emerge in the landscape;“Jump Mound”conceals a trampoline;“The Hobbit House”gives the children a personal play spaceina landscape of native grasses. Similarly, the granite curbing and curved lawn embankmentbecomesan impromptu children’s theater for open-air performances.

In addition to creating a backdrop for play, the landscape alsoserves as a viewing garden for a collection of contemporary outdoor sculpture. Paths meander through both formal gardens and more native plantings,creating amulti-layered and sensoryprocession, accented bymoments of pause to reflect on sculpture while framing views out to the biggerlandscape.

Data

Landscape Architecture: Surfacedesign
Project Homepage: http://www.sdisf.com/gardens#/hacienda/
Other designers involved in the design of landscape (architects and landscape architects): Siteworks Landscape
Project location: Marin County, CA
Year Built: 2011

Photos: Marion Brenner

Published on November 14, 2021