The design reinterprets the notion of a back yard play space. Folded planes create a very graphic garden when viewed from above, but at the garden level the focus is play space for rolling, sliding, climbing rope, digging, and planting. The garden has a direct connection with the minimal modern architicture while addressing the steep natural terrain through series of terraces and folding planes.
Project Narrative: The clients commissioned the landscape architecture office in 2004 to design the front entry, backyard, and roof deck plantings. The three story minimal modern designed house in the Buena Vista Park Neighborhood has beautiful views of San Francisco and gets wonderful light. When we started the project the rear space was a sloped triangle space 25’ wide by 44’ long. The clients just had twin girls and wanted the backyard to be a play space for the girls and some thing nice to view from above. The Garden was completed in 2006.
Our design strategy was inspired by the work of Tadao Ando with his beautiful clean smooth snap tie concrete wall work and efficient use of space. We began to organize the space into four zones. The upper terrace is a flat lawn for play and a cantilevered stone bench for the parents to sit and watch the children play. Snap tie colored concrete walls were used as extensions of the architecture to terrace the planting spaces. The second zone utilized the sloped areas as usable space. From the first lawn terrace which is the launch point for the twin girls as they could choose to slide down the polished concrete slide and land on recycled rubber paving, walk down the floating stone steps, roll down the lawn hill, or repeal with rope down the lawn slope. The second lower terrace located below the sloped space is a triangle sand box, a main axis with granite stepping stones with a carved stone sculpture at the end of the axis. At the bottom of slide is a large lawn area for tent camping. At the end of the lawn is and herb garden. A small metal gate separates the play area from the service shed below.
Evergreens surround the play garden providing a very private space while incorporating the large date palm (Phoenix canariensis ) borrowed from next door.
The front entry planting was a minimal move of creating a simple green and strictly linear carpet of mattress vine (Muehlenbeckia complexa) around the existing maple tree.
The roof deck gets the most sun and has panoramic views of San Francisco. The planting are roses and dwarf olives.
The design creates fun play spaces that integrates with architecture that is highly graphic when viewed from above, When at the ground level the the slope plane creates a fun dynamic for and outdoor play space.
