contrasts

With the construction fence removed today, the transparency of the living/dining room and its relationships to the park and courtyard have become more visible. Here's the covered patio facing the park, seen from the park with the sun setting behind. The rest of the landscape is coming into shape vey quickly.

The coral rock planters are in place, the swales have been dug, and both are waiting for plants. The visual contrast between the crisp geometry and metal finish of the house and the rough texture and golden color of the stone sets a theme that we're carrying throughout the landscape.

We'll pave the courtyard, soon, providing a simple gridded base for the big rocks that are resting between the courtyard and the landscape beyond.

The rocks in the foreground (at the edge of the courtyard) and background echo each other and emphasize the depth of the space north of the house. They're a good height and shape to act as informal seating.

As you move out beyond the courtyard, the landscape opens to the west (left) toward the park, and to the east (below). Our landscape consultant, James Jiler, is using more rock to draw the different parts of the yard into a comprehensive whole, each with a separate identity (established by the different plantings) and unified by the use of coral rock throughout.

The big avocado tree provides a pivot point around which the back yard rotates, and helps define and separate several spaces.