Sophisticated Outdoor Living
CHUCK BAUMANN In the ‘Backyard Entertainment’ industry, planning micro environments creates smart transitions throughout the outdoor living area. Closing Notes: Nicco Baumann PHOTOS: Jimi Smith Photography
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s a pool builder, when I’m creating a sophisticated outdoor living area, frequently I look to incorporate exciting transitions which immerse you into the entire backyard. The technique was accomplished adeptly by a very famous landscape architect in the California Bay Area, by the name of Thomas Church. My firm, Creative Environments, was selected to update the swimming pool area on one particular backyard design which was done by Thomas back in the mid 1930’s. In his original concept, there was no swimming pool incorporated into his design. The pool, however, was added to the yard in the late 1970’s. Roughly five decades later, our company finds itself with the good fortune of remodeling the swimming pool accenting this timeless design. When we initially took on this daunting historical remodeling project, my son Nicco and our landscape designer, Peter Koenig did a lot of research on Thomas Church. We started by visiting his most iconic yard landscape design project of the Donnell Ranch Pool and Landscape in Sonoma. Thomas was known for his ability to design inviting backyard environments by creating different elevations. These micro-environments were ideal for various
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purposes and enhanced the enjoyment of the landscape experience. Thomas achieved this by installing steps that gradually transitioned you to a new texture or environment area as you traveled through the yard.
Planning Micro Environments This particular project that we remodeled is a classic example of transitioning from one texture to another. Our designer, Peter Koenig, worked together with our clients and us to maintain the original integrity of the “Master’s Design”. The real trick here was to maintain the theme of the backyard and at the same time use the construction methods of today’s high standards. This backyard is full of micro-environments that are separated by pathways along with the many different textures used along with elevation changes that transition from one area to the next. Did we honor the original integrity of the design? You can be the judge. The test to see if we got this right was when I was invited to a social gathering by our clients. I took the opportunity to observe the 75 guests in attendance. Gradually, each found a corner of the outdoor living area to enjoy.
