The 650㎡private garden is located in the suburb of Shanghai. The space of the site is extremely irregular. The primary task is to reshape the spatial experience by planning circulations and guiding the sight through our design. Based on that, we hope to create a garden that is storytelling, poetic and visually appealing, and could bring people back to nature.
The site is divided into three sequential garden spaces: The Stone Sea Garden at the beginning right in front of the door, the Strolling Pond Garden in the middle and the Mountain Garden in the far end. The overall layout is a dynamic combination of stones, water and plants.
The Stone Sea Garden
Open the door and windows of the living room, a carefully constructed stone wall gently rises from the floor indicates the idea of tidal in the ocean. The island-shaped paving and the grass are intertwined and infiltrated into the ground. Several large stones are surrounded by gravels suggesting mountains in the ocean.
Once the wind blows, the grass will slightly wave, generating the scenario of“Waves are roaring with mountains standing”. The firmness of the stone and the softness of the imaginary water are fused in the same scene, giving people a rich sense of experience and imagination.
The Strolling Pond Garden
The island paving will lead you to a koi pond with waterfall in the center of the site. The waterfall is composed of a group of stones that are designed to guide people’s sight as well as shaping the garden space. The surrounding plant clusters form the characteristics of a nimble and resourceful image, which contrasts with the power of stone.
Above the pond, the wood tea pavilion plays a role in supporting the integration of the space. On the one hand, it provides a stopping point for watching the waterfall and listening the sound of the water. On the other hand, it directs people’s sight to the depth of the trail.
The Mountain Garden
Walking to the deepest part of the courtyard, and strolling on the winding stone trails, you will feel like having a mountain trip to a more private space for meditation and imagination.
A sizeable stacked stone wall representing the mountains is looming in the frame of plants. The ground stone adopts a unified design method to indicate the shadow of the mountains. From the selection of materials to the construction process, the edges and textures of the natural stone have been protected to simulate the natural phenomenon.
Details
The treatment of the gaps between the stones is the most important finishing touch. Each gap must be carefully considered to mimic the trend, width, depth of natural stone gaps. The wide gap is embedded with grass and vines, and the embellishment of plants injects wildness and vitality of the mountains into the stones.
Photography:
Shan Pan
Location:
Shanghai, China
Design year:
2017
Year Completed:
2019
