LANDSCAPE ARCHITECT, Richard Anderson, (404) 892-1788 , ARCHITECT, Yong Pak and Francis Kirkpatrick, Pak Heydt & Associates, (404) 231-3195 , BUILDER (HOUSE), Dan Person, (404) 512-6666, BUILDER (STUDIO), Micky Watkins, (770) 605-7140, Specialty building materials (oak beams and Yorkstone pavers), Wyatt Childs Inc.Where Alchemy is the transformation of matter from one state to another, Alchemy Gardens and Design transforms outdoor spaces into gardens that reflect those who call it home. Like Anderson and Yong Pak, the two exemplify teamwork at its best. When all is said and done, this garden beautifully complements the house, and the house returns the favor. “We did it in a nice little arc so your eyes travels, giving you more of a panoramic view,” he says. Anderson cleverly used excavation material from the construction of the master bedroom wing to expand the space. The lower terrace, for instance, has increased in size. And the master bedroom wing has an axis that is terminated by a curved hedge.”Īnd there are other subtle touches. In the house, there’s a fireplace that looks along the axis that terminates at the fountain. When you come down the stairs into the garden, looking across the millstone and through openings in the hedges, your view is terminated by the studio. “Everything on this property is pretty much set up on axes, though they’re not necessarily evident. Once you’ve got the space created, all you have to do is decorate it.”īut there’s nothing random about the placement of Anderson’s outdoor rooms. They are tools you can use to form space trees can form a roof or canopy and hedges can create walls. I think all landscapes are a series of outdoor rooms, so it’s all about definition of space-not really about the plant materials themselves. “One of the most difficult clients I’ve ever had is myself because there are so many options! You only have this limited space, and you can’t do everything. “This entire landscape has been an evolution,” he explains. But the owner admits that the landscape-his specialty-was more of a challenge. And, like they’d done on so many projects before, the pros collaborated on each design decision. When the time was right, Anderson officially brought Yong Pak’s firm on board for the renovation of the house. I guess, back in the late ’40s, having a two-car garage was a little obscene.” The only difference was that he had envisioned one as a garage and one as a studio. ![]() About a week later, I looked at them and noticed on the site plan that he’d already envisioned these garages. “Later, at the closing, the sellers handed me 12 sheets of original tracings that the architect had done. I liked it, but didn’t give it much more thought. So Yong said, ‘Let me show you what I’d do.’ He drew a quick little sketch, showing how he’d use two single-car garages to form the front courtyard. I knew I wanted a master wing and a two-car garage, but I really hadn’t had time to think about it. ![]() I told him I was buying that house, and he asked what I was going to do with it. “I had the flyer sitting out, and he asked me what it was. “During the time that I was negotiating, Yong Pak and I got together for dinner,” he recalls. ![]() And as a landscape architect, I find that to be really special.”īut even before the house was officially his, destiny stepped in. “Everywhere you step out of this house you’re on earth, you’re on grade. “I fell in love with the house because of the way it fits the land,” Anderson says. The house was designed by its original owner, Ed Wells, a partner at Toombs, Amisano & Wells, a firm known for-among other things-its work on the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank, Lenox Square as well as FDR’s “Little White House” in Warm Springs. Instead, he and fiancée Viki Lauter carefully considered the home’s architecture and its landscape design as a whole, each ending up the better for it. But this landscape architect did more than surround his house with superb horticultural specimens. Approaching Rick Anderson’s home on Moores Mill, you’re immediately struck by the well-manicured courtyard, where perfectly symmetrical plantings create a sense of calm.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |