Charming Gate
Garden gates have always been one of my favorite elements of a home. This Highland Park home has a hierarchy of doors — a carved stone portico, a massive wood and glass front door, wood-patterned motor court gates, and a guest quarters’ wall door. And yet, this charming gate to the pool house captures my imagination.
When one thinks of architecture, one generally thinks of the composition of the main house. And when one thinks of landscape architecture, it’s often the overall impact of the hardscape and landscape design of the larger spaces. And yet, it’s these nuanced spaces like this that show off the brilliance of architect Larry Boerder and landscape architect Harold Leidner.
The hand-troweled stucco of the wall, with its tapered ends, insets, and flat tile caps, frames a scrolled gate with a bowed top inset with stained planks, punctuated by a rotated square window. Harold Leidner’s landscape design adds to the magic: the landscape on both sides of the walk leading up to the front door looks simple and tailored, but a closer look reveals layers of different colors, sizes, densities, and heights of plantings. A backdrop of Armstrong Parkway adds to the Highland Park allure of nature.
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