Michael A. Gilkey, Inc.

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News from the Design Studio: November 2009

Outdoor Rooms: The Cherokee Park West Project

The design concept for this Sarasota residential landscape was to extend the architecture by creating a series of intimate spaces within a unified exterior composition. Designed in collaboration with Jonathan Parks Architect , each space is artfully defined using architectural and landscape elements, unifying the composition through form, repetition, views, and materials. Just as the courtyard architecture brings the outdoors in, the landscape extends the interior and mimics the architecture in both style and function.

Great care and ecological sensitivity were displayed by selecting a Florida Friendly plant palette, consisting of drought tolerant plants and limited turf. Waterwise irrigation practices were implemented, matching precipitation rates of a low volume system, ensuring maximum efficiency. Native aggregate and groundcover were used throughout the property, as was responsible grading and drainage with on site water storage.

The Cherokee Park West residence integrated landscape architecture, architecture, interior design and client involvement, to successfully create an extension of the interior spaces through the gardens of this Moroccan-inspired home. Michael A. Gilkey, Inc. was honored to receive an Award of Honor from the Florida chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects for this project.

Cherokee Park West Featured in November SRQ

Excerpts from the cover story, entitled "Cherokee Romance," by Lindsay Downey:

"Nestled among towering oaks and statuesque retreats in Sarasota’s exclusive Cherokee Park neighborhood sits a home reminiscent of a bygone era, where cool breezes float through grandiose windows and indoor and outdoor spaces flow into one. The crisp white, art deco-meets Moroccan-style home extends effortlessly to a series of inventive outdoor rooms where hedges create walls, hardscape mimics tile, tree canopies define the ceiling and textured plants accent a vibrant outdoor décor.

Architect Jonathan Parks designed the home at 1729 Cherokee Drive with influences of the 1920s, a time when open windows and natural light paid homage to architectural clarity and brought a sense of organic nature to the indoors. But what began as a home designed to pay tribute to the legacy of the quiet, family-oriented Cherokee Park neighborhood became one of the most innovative uses of indoor-outdoor spaces in the city, with Parks and landscape architect Michael A. Gilkey, Jr. meshing their visions into one. “The thoughtfulness of going through and really tying the landscape and the architecture together, it’s one of the most collaborative projects we’ve done,” Parks says. The home, which was completed in December 2008 and is listed for a sale price of $2.5 million, won Residential Design and Build magazine’s 2009 Design Excellence Award for Outdoor Living and the Florida Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects’ 2009 Award of Honor.

Whereas a landscape architect might typically come in at the end of a home construction project, Gilkey and Parks talked through design concepts together from day one. “They had to be on the same page philosophically and their hearts and minds really needed to be in tune with each other,” says (owner and developer Jan) Zachariasse. The artists envisioned small courtyards and romantic gardens comprising a series of distinct yet intimate exterior spaces that would spill out from the modular home.

AIA's 10 x 10: What Inspires You?

Sarasota landscape architect Michael A. Gilkey, Jr. was excited to join a cast of ten designers on October 23 as they presented “10 x 10: Ten Slides by Ten Designers,” and answer the question: What Inspires You? The event is held quarterly by the Florida Gulf Coast Chapter of the American Institute of Architects at the Art Center of Sarasota. Admission is $5 for AIA members and $10 for the public.

Michael A. Gilkey, Jr. enjoyed learning what inspires his colleagues Please visit our website to see Michael's presentation.

In Memoriam: Lawrence Halprin, 1916-2009

Excerpts from The New York Times Memorial October 28, 2009

Lawrence Halprin, the tribal elder of American landscape architecture, who used the word choreography to describe his melding of modernism, nature and movement in hundreds of projects, including the memorial to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in Washington, died on Sunday at his home in Kentfield, Calif. He was 93.

The cause was complications from a fall, his wife, Anna Halprin said.

As postwar America sprouted suburban malls, urban parks, corporate compounds and federal urban renewal projects, Mr. Halprin helped forge a new, sharper style of landscape architecture, often as dependent on concrete as on vegetation. Places he shaped include Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco; Nicollet Mall in Minneapolis; a sequence of urban spaces with dazzling fountains in Portland, Ore.; a park atop a freeway in Seattle; and large plazas in Los Angeles.

“He almost single-handedly reclaimed the city as the purview of the landscape architect,” said Charles Birnbaum, founder and president of the Cultural Landscape Foundation.

Other projects over his career of more than 60 years included a new town in Oahu; parts of the Bay Area Rapid Transit System; a 1.5-mile walkway overlooking the Old City of Jerusalem; a new pedestrian approach to Yosemite Falls; and Letterman Digital Arts Center in the Presidio of San Francisco.

“All of Halprin’s designs reflect this passion to give people as many options as possible to go this way or that, to reverse directions, to pause, to start over, to be alone, to meet others, and to experience as many different sights, smells and sounds as the site permits,” Benjamin Forgey, The Washington Post’s architecture critic, wrote in The Smithsonian in 1988.

Michael A. Gilkey, Inc. has been shaped by the work of Mr. Halprin and we will continue to learn from his legacy.

Current Trends: Florida Grades and Standards

We know that to create a great outdoor space, a landscape architect must follow the basic principles of good design. But to create a great outdoor space that succeeds over time, a landscape architect must also follow the principles of nature by understanding horticulture, seeking a deep knowledge of the medium we have chosen to help define outdoor space.

If proper plant material is not selected, a landscape design, however great, will fail. Plant selection should be based on 'Right Plant, Right Place,' which is the first principle discussed in the Florida Yards and Neighborhoods Handbook. Understanding sun, soil, temperature, wind, salt, nutrient requirements, and ultimate size top the list of concerns here in Southwest Florida.

Seeking and procuring healthy, properly grown, vigorous plant material is key to the success of any design. Landscape architects need to have working knowledge of the Florida Grades and Standards as set forth by the Florida Nursery Growers and Landscape Association, as well as relationships with nurseries and growers who abide by those standards. If horticulture is a strong driving factor in a landscape design, there will be a wonderful outdoor space for years to come.

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