Location: London, England, UK
Architect: Peter Zumthor & Piet Oudolf
Completed: 2011
7 Photographs
I remember my first encounter with the work of Peter Zumthor. I was working in the offices of Kerry Hill in Singapore, and Kerry had a black and white copy of the latest A+U monograph, focused on this elusive Swiss figure quietly crafting beautiful buildings in the mountains. I still have my copy that I bought later that week, and for one reason or another, I have found myself visiting a great number of buildings designed by him over the years.
As I look back on the catalogue of buildings I have visited and loved over the years, no other contemporaneous name is mentioned so often as the Bündner. I’ve posted about one of my favourites before, the exquisite Shelter Roman Archaeological Site in Chur, but that visit came many years after this one, my first visit to a Zumthor building and my first and only Piet Oudolf garden.
I recall being cynical about it before visiting and wanting to dislike it for some reason, but it left a lasting impression on me and I have enjoyed every one of Peter Zumthor’s buildings since.
I immediately loved the elegant simplicity. A simple design of a cloistered courtyard garden stripped back to its most essential elements. The entry hall wraps around the steep-roofed veranda surrounding the courtyard, overflowing with a garden designed to change and bloom constantly, providing a differing experience and landscape for the guest each time they visit. The entire building itself was black crafted out of timber, covered in a seamless coated skrim.
At the time, I was only really beginning to use photography as a way of studiously examining buildings, and I didn’t get a good or complete set of photographs, but in this instance, it seems like enough. It was a difficult space to photograph, but I liked the photos I did get and I think they portray the characteristics of the pavilion that I loved.
On recollection, two main things come to mind, which I have found myself referencing time and time again. One is the elemental nature of this building and others by Zumthor, something that has probably influenced me in ways I am only just aware of now. The other is that often his buildings are unassuming until you get inside. Curious yes, obvious no. The real delight is reserved for the user.
I am yet to see another Piet Oudolf garden that I am aware of, but in reminiscing, it reminds me to look them up and add something to the ever-growing list of adventures to be had.
HWLK