Projects

Hidden below Park Avenue’s residential high-rise buildings, the Scholar’s Garden merges a traditional eastern culture with a conventional western one. Both organic and artificial plants frame the courtyard to create a fluid movement of space from the ground floor to the elevated deck.

The ground floor features an eight-foot tall scholar rock, an irregular form that is traditionally associated with reflection and spirituality. To compliment the introspective nature of the rock and open the space, a mirrored glass sculpture, by artist Vicky Colombet, sits adjacent to the centerpiece. The second floor features a small sitting terrace and elevated plantings that screen the surrounding buildings from view.

It was important to separate the courtyard from the surrounding buildings in order to create an intimate and self-contained environment. Sculpted rock formations and delicate pine trees were set against the elevated birch forest backdrop to create a view reminiscent of a Chinese landscape painting.