Inner (City) Sanctum

Small Courtyard Design

Sanc-tum – noun

1. A sacred or holy place.

2. A private place where one is free from intrusion.

This small inner city courtyard first came to our attention when we we’re shown some concept drawings and asked by the Landscape Architects designing the space if we could offer some practical construction advice. The design ethic and layout was fairly established at that point and the only input needed from Stone Circle was to help find workable ways of implementing their very big ideas in a very small space.

The primary design brief was to remove the dated formal courtyard and instead build a more organic and energetic space that could be engaged as a quite retreat or a sturdy children’s play space. We continued to work with Kendall and Kate from ‘Kimira Studio’ as they added details the design prior to commencing works on site and then during the construction as design details were allowed to shift and evolve in response to the site and the clients wishes.

The restrictive doors and windows that lead onto the existing yard were replaced with generous double sliding doors that now allow for a seamless transition from the internal living areas out onto the circular terraced decks and paving area. Initially the concept called for us to leave the existing paving but it proved too unstable to be worked with, and the designers decided on a paved surface that kept a memory of the garden as it had been yet worked sympathetically with the newer contemporary features. Looking out across the decks and the paving sees the garden reflected in the beautiful copper gates that alone call for a tip of the hat to the designers for their vision and to our client for wholeheartedly embracing the idea. Suspended above the decks is a subtle steel pergola with panels of fixed roofing, ornamental grape vines and open spaces working together to provide light, shade, shelter and beauty all in the tiniest of spaces. Two Japanese Maples and a Crepe Myrtle will grow to provide a lace like foliage canopy supported by an organic latticework of sculptural branches.

Working on this garden with Kendall, Kate and our client was a fantastic journey and we will be watching joyfully over the coming years as the garden matures.