Excerpts from an article in The Women's Times, April 2006, by Julie Waggoner
"You've seen those houses. Grand or cozy, they rest in the landscape as comfortably as a woman with a book nestles into an armchair. Some are cuddled by gardens and stone walks, others breezily sit in the landscape as if they sprouted along with the meadow. How do these houses look so...at home?
"Sometimes it's the skill and savvy eye of the residents. Sometimes luck. But often, that beauty is achieved through the expertise of an architect and landscape architect-professionals who specialize in knitting together dreams, comfort, shelter and environment to create a beautiful home that lives beautifully in the landscape.
"Sue Reed, a Shelburne-based landscape architect and teacher at the Conway School of Landscape Design, says, "I want to create a home environment harmoniously fitted to the natural world-so simply that my hand as a designer is virtually invisible." Reed's design aesthetic is oriented toward local ecology; she works as much as possible with native plants and organic practices. "Ecological design is design for the long term and the larger world," she says, noting that people in New England have begun to recognize and request it.
"Basics come first. Reed pays attention to the relationship between the ground level, the slope of the property and the interior floor levels. Exterior doors are a primary concern. The house must be sited so residents can comfortably enter and exit and make the best use of both property and home. She also focuses on drainage, ensuring water can be directed away from the house-a practical concern dull to the layperson, but one that could wreak havoc if ignored.
"In designing outdoor gathering spaces, such as porches or backyards, Reed says there is a nearly universal appreciation for spaces where the occupant can feel "nested," with an opportunity for an interesting view. She points out these elements in project photographs: a stone patio at the back of a house offering a cozy gathering place and a view of the large yard. A sloped garden at the patio's edge provides color and a buffer between two landscape grades.
"Whether inside or out, good design not only solves practical problems, says Reed, but "involves the complexity of people's hopes and dreams about their world."
"Sometimes it's the skill and savvy eye of the residents. Sometimes luck. But often, that beauty is achieved through the expertise of an architect and landscape architect-professionals who specialize in knitting together dreams, comfort, shelter and environment to create a beautiful home that lives beautifully in the landscape.
"Sue Reed, a Shelburne-based landscape architect and teacher at the Conway School of Landscape Design, says, "I want to create a home environment harmoniously fitted to the natural world-so simply that my hand as a designer is virtually invisible." Reed's design aesthetic is oriented toward local ecology; she works as much as possible with native plants and organic practices. "Ecological design is design for the long term and the larger world," she says, noting that people in New England have begun to recognize and request it.
"Basics come first. Reed pays attention to the relationship between the ground level, the slope of the property and the interior floor levels. Exterior doors are a primary concern. The house must be sited so residents can comfortably enter and exit and make the best use of both property and home. She also focuses on drainage, ensuring water can be directed away from the house-a practical concern dull to the layperson, but one that could wreak havoc if ignored.
"In designing outdoor gathering spaces, such as porches or backyards, Reed says there is a nearly universal appreciation for spaces where the occupant can feel "nested," with an opportunity for an interesting view. She points out these elements in project photographs: a stone patio at the back of a house offering a cozy gathering place and a view of the large yard. A sloped garden at the patio's edge provides color and a buffer between two landscape grades.
"Whether inside or out, good design not only solves practical problems, says Reed, but "involves the complexity of people's hopes and dreams about their world."
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