The idea of a big backyard has long been considered an essential element of suburban iconic culture, synonymous with the fading aspirational ideal of a quarter acre block and a modest home. Our backyards are important spaces: they can be practical, useful and fanciful, providing a space for imagination, creativity, toys, pets, projects and failed ambitions. They can be spiritual or community places, peacefully intimate or physically challenging. Despite most of us not having our very own big backyard, the spaces around us and closest to us continue to inspire. A backyard evokes an outdoor environment we engage with in our everyday lives, which we feel an intimate connection to, perhaps responsibility for - a place that shapes us and at times a place we shape.
