House and garden

This is where we live. The Dutch architects from "de Zanger+Dane" created the awarded design of these houses (ours typed "Captiva"), inspired by the "prairie house" of Franklin Lloyd Wright [B]. Originally there where 7 types of houses, a number that later has been expanded. As, in principle, all changes under architecture are allowed, probably there are no two similar houses in this small "village" integrated with the Flevo Golf Resort, north of Lelystad.

The aerial photo below shows where and how we are located in the province of Flevoland (aka "the new land" (Dutch only) ) north of the city of Lelystad. This land was taken from the sea in only the previous century, in the decade around 1942.
The photo dates back to 1999, the time that not all houses nor the roads where finished.
On the photo below, our house and garden are located in the area circled in red.

Tsubo-en Groundplan pop-up.	View location in Google Maps   See the Tsubo-en location in Google Earth.
Flevo Golf Resort (FGR) Lelystad Netherlands	More info on the nature in the provence of Flevoland (Dutch only): Het Flevo-landschap
Right and below: The "prairie house" of Franklin Lloyd Wright.

The Frank Lloyd Wright Foundation

Integration of house and garden

Garden space in Japan is never seen as separated from the interior world of the traditional residence. Instead the garden is linked to the dwelling by means of a Veranda encircling the house. The veranda acts as a transitional space between interior and exterior.
In our garden the term "Integration of house and garden" is used in two ways. One is the fact that we wanted to enjoy the garden from within the house. Taking our climate this is what we do a substantial part of the time. The second aspect was to having fit the house into the garden and vice versa. This brought us to the method and result that is shown in this website.
Integration of house and garden begins in the front garden compartment but is most visible for the residents in relation to the main garden compartment.

When the screens of a traditional tatami room are fully pulled back, the garden is considered to flow into it.
This blurring of the division between garden and house, exterior and interior, is deliberate and is aided by the similar levels of floor, veranda and garden ground and by the absence of a raised sill. In our house we have a number of sliding-doors that come close to the above described. Also we have some large windows that reach to the floor and give the same effect. Like with a traditional Japanese house, the eaves (overhanging roofs) add to the effect of bringing the garden into the house (Note: Lloyd Wright never acknowledged any Japanese influences on his design, he said it was only a confirmation of his work [A] ).

In analogy to the "shoin" or "reading room" architecture that developed in the course of the centuries we regard our living room as the shoin. Like in a genuine shoinzukuri style building, akarishouji like sliding-doors, give entrance to our living room, or its mediaeval forerunner the meeting hall (kaisho).

A prominent feature of the shoinzukuri architecture is the possibility to open almost a whole wall consisting of sliding screens over the full length. Thus allowing an unobstructed full view on the garden scenery. Although not the same, the combination of sliding doors, windows and the sun lounge in our house give a well comparable effect (see: Veranda).

The scenery on the back side of the house is beautiful, so why not create a garden that continues towards this view ? This approach will help the garden feel much bigger and also blur the boundaries with the surrounding scenery, in our case the golf course. During the summer season, at the left, this view is limited to the golf course green and Tee and straight ahead by the trees and bushes. In winter this view continues as far as the dike that protects us of flooding. In Japan this practice of using "borrowed view" or scenery is called: shakkei (see: Borrowed scenery).

Below, a panorama view from the living room into the back and right site of the garden. Although here the lowest level of view is not at garden level it still very much gives a feeling that the garden is one with the room.

	A close-up view of the main garden O-karikomi (living sculpture) from the living. Noteworthy is that the backdrop in its full is composed with borrowed scenery (shakkei technique). In summer this borrowed scenery is formed by the bushes and trees on the golf course. In winter it shows as far as the dike that protects us from the, also diked, inner-see (IJselmeer).
Yet an other view of the o-karikomi, now showing more of the interior home.
	A shot taken from the same view-point as above, now turned somewhat to the left. This shows a Tee of the golf course with houses in the far background.
Now tuning to the right, this shows a view on the Buddhist Triad.
	View from a position in the connecting corridor.
Same as previous but from a lowered position. The framing results almost in a painting like view. Also see: Veranda and Paths, Roji for additional related information.

Following are some photo's taken from within the master bedroom ( chuumon).


The following photos's show the exterior of the house with most of the windows that where used to create the above integration impressions (exept the master bedroom, chuumon, view).

Also see: The Ginshanada, gravel area.

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