by Isabel Duprat

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At the top of the cliff the line of an infinite horizon gives us the dimension of the landscape. The wind is constant and welcome in the dry aggressive summer, and becomes inconvenient in the rainy winter. The wind is even worse when it blows from the southwest.

 

The great beauty of the 12000 m² property is the indescribable view of the sea. In Summer when the lack of rain causes the sand to settle, the clear blue shades exaggerate the palette. Yes, it is a dazzle! And that eternal discussion that the beautiful is relative and cultural loses its consistency in the face of this magnificent vision. In nature we all know what is beautiful.

 

The house designed by Marcio Kogan, 60 meters long, ought to be mimicked in the landscape, and the feeling of omnipresence, since it was absolutely alone on the ground, would be attenuated by the landscaping project.

 

There were only 3 trees at the site: a small and graceful Ouratea by the sidewalk and two slender ones on the right side of the lot. On the threshold of the property, a mangaba (Hancornia speciosa), which if you have one, you keep and care for it. We make wonderful juice and ice cream with its fruits. I never managed to get seedlings to plant in the gardens and even the transplantation of young specimens is not successful.

What I prioritized in the landscaping project was to create a garden in order to receive this architecture starting from completely empty ground, with unfavorable soil. My purpose was to create a pleasant space that would enable the enjoyment of the beautiful view that was offered to the spectator, integrating it into the surroundings without transforming it into just a garden-belvedere.

Both sides of the house open onto the garden. The east face opens wide to the sea, the west to the street and into the gated community, an area that begged for privacy.

 

The land, although appearing flat, had a visually uncomfortable slope towards the edge of the cliff. I drew smooth contour lines structuring the ground, making the house more comfortable, and which were assumed in the design. The first level involves the entire building defined by a continuous wall 30 cm below the level of the house. Its organicity makes a counterpoint to the linearity of the house. In front of the sea, these curves are explicit in the drawing and the presence of the constant wind is revealed in the coming and going of the grasses of different heights, colors and flowers, which I planted in large blocks as waves in the surf. I designed the swimming pool integrated with this movement, a waterbed in the middle of the grasses embedded in the sinuous landing, reflecting the moods of the sky. The pool was made for swimming and features 25 meters in length and has parallel sides, at the customer's request. Ingas and Pithecolobium were planted preparing the shade next to it.

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The grass-jointed basalt makes all the external paths and the pool deck, which was covered with slate.

 

Reconstituting the vegetation on the cliff board that a long time ago was covered with forest is extremely difficult. But I wanted to plant trees, they needed to come back. In the area between the house and the street, with a width varying between 30 and 60 meters, large trees were planted, such as neem (Azadirachta indica), sapucaya (Lecythis pisonis), Erythrina falcata, Samanea, flamboyant, monguba (Pachira aquatica), aroeiras (Schinus terebinthifolia) and ipês (Tabebuias), giving scale to the house.

 

Trees, such as araçás (Psidium cattleianum), Hibiscus tiliaceus, capororoca (Myrsine), caimito (Chrysophyllum cainito) and grumixama (Eugenia brasiliensis), make the closure more or less dense, depending on what one wants for protection or just concealment. Shrubs and covers, such as annatto, Clusia lanceolata, trialis, pineapples, acme, crinuns, turnera, holmiskioldia, bouganvillea and mussaendas, bring color to the entrance of the house. A certain disorganization was purposeful in order to have a place with a density of vegetation that we are gradually coming to understand and which is very welcome on this face of the land, providing privacy as well as protection from the sun and wind. Many philodendrons and Etlingera elatior brush against this face of the house wildly.

At the borders, many fruit trees. Next to the neighboring house, on the left, pitangueiras (Eugenia uniflora), grumixamas (Eugenia brasiliensis), Myrciaria glazioviana, and cashew trees facing the sea, and some oil palm trees that join those of the neighboring garden and make the necessary closing while showing all their beauty.

 

On the other side, more fruit as in a backyard: graviola (Annona muricata), breadfruit, tamarind, seriguela (Spondias purpurea), to compose this area with a sweet Bahia flavor.

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