We’re home from a two-week vacation in the UK, primarily in Scotland. What I have noticed regarding garden design is that without experiencing new sights, exploring gardens old or new, and without being open to new ideas or ways to approach a garden layout, then all of our landscapes become repeats of earlier designs.
I’ve heard it said that the science of engineering is basically the same today as it was in Greek and Roman times, and even earlier when you consider ancient monuments such as Stonehenge in southern England. The problems being solved in architecture and construction are very much the same today as they were thousands of years ago, only now we have more sophisticated equipment and computers to aid in our designs.
I would argue that the same is true in landscape design – we are still creating outdoor space that is functional, aesthetic and (hopefully) fits the site we are working within. As Frank Lloyd Wright put it, he wanted to create architecture that was a grace to the land, not a disgrace.
We travel for a number of reasons. Mainly we want to see and experience new places and meet the people who call those places home. We also want to, temporarily, escape from where we live, refresh our senses and return with ideas we would not have gathered by remaining in one place.
To see how other countries and cultures have used the native building materials available to them when creating their own gardens gives me opportunity to rethink how I may use what is within my reach when working up a design. When the natural landscape and the built landscape merge into one then I feel that the garden really is a grace to the land and to architecture of the home.
I also enjoy photographing different styles of gates, pergolas and arbors. How they are joined, the details of their construction.
Beyond the garden, formal or not, lies the natural landscape. Scotland is one of the most beautiful countries we’ve visited, and the wildness of the countryside is always a draw for me.
The next couple of posts will be a continuation of our holiday in Scotland, finishing with our stay in Edinburgh. There will be lots of photographs, some with purpose, others simply to show off the scenery of a lovely part of the world – and another reason why we travel.
