An Award-Winning Garden in Brookline
April 14, 2015
By Paula M. Bodah
When we ran a piece about a garden designed by Matthew Cunningham in our November-December 2014 issue we knew we were looking at a special space. So we werenât at all surprised to learn that the project recently won a gold award at the Association of Professional Landscape Designersâ 2015 International Landscape Design Awards. We thought a second look at Matthewâs award-winning project was in order.
The house, designed by Stern McCafferty Architecture and Interiors, is an airy, modern, split-level in Brookline, Massachusetts. Matthewâs goal was a landscape plan thatâlike the houseâhad an organic, serene, and peaceful feeling. He wanted his clients to be able to sit outside in their urban neighborhood but feel as removed from the world as if they were at the beach. The three nationally known experts who made up the judging panel included Julie Moir Messervy, a Vermont landscape architect whose work has graced our pages more than once. She and the other judges agreed that a strength of Matthewâs work is the way the plantings honor the architecture. âThe architecture and landscape flow, and are in balanceâŚâ the judges said. âA stellar example of site and landscape design.â
Photography by Mathew Cunningham
One way Matthew achieved the balance the judges so admired was with masses of plantings. For instance, he used vivid yellow carex alertaâa grasslike sedgeâat the foot of the retaining wall and the stairs, then planted more in the yard atop the wall. âBy using swaths of the same material, it has a calming presence in the landscape,â he explains.
Near the house, Matthew constructed bluestone terraces to hold seating and dining areas, but he gave the terraces an asymmetrical edge so that they gently merge with a walking path and the gardens.
Color and scent are also important in this landscaping plan. Spiky salvia and fluffy allium, shown here, are joined by Russian sage, creeping thyme, and hay-scented fern. âEven when things arenât in bloom, thereâs something special about the garden because thereâs an aroma thatâs really nice,â Matthew says.
The judgesâ verdict says it all: âThis is a wonderful project, beautifully executed in every way.â
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