Escaping seasons of the mind
Awarded Silver, designed by Lilidh Matthews & John Tallis, Built by Outdoor Living Gardens in support of the charity Perennial
The garden depicts the escape of the mind and home into the garden and is a depiction of emotions through the seasons. The design is centred around two facts: that the majority of suicides happen in the autumn, and that humans spend 90% of their life indoors.
The centre of the design from above is designed to look like a clock / compass representing the passing and also the value of time. This space is designed to be a void, a space of internal reflection. The planting is designed to be uniform and ordered by using block planting. Using herbs also links the space to the kitchen too creating the thought of ‘the indoors’. The well itself depicts a place of reflection. Around the well and around the centre of the garden, there will be two rings for the inclusion of the quote. I have some ideas for this that I am working on.
Autumn:
The top left corner of the design represents autumn which is where the designers started, based on the above fact regarding suicides. The landscaping is designed to create a feeling of overwhelm, with the highest point in the wall and the highest point for the Corten steel pillars. The planting colours represent a lot of typical autumn colours, which are also used to represent feelings of anger. Additionally the central sandstone paving is at its most fragmented, illustrating the self-doubt and fractures in mindset when you are cut off from the outdoors.
Winter:
The planting is designed to represent the colour of the season (blues) utilising spikey plants too which illustrate how the garden is perceived at this time of year with not enough people spending time out there. The height of the Corten steel posts and the outer wall all start to reduce in height as the hope of spring beings to change the mindset.
Spring:
This is the lowest point of the wall and the end of the Corten steel posts, where it feels like the grip of the corten steel claw is beginning to release. The bright yellows also relate to the bright yellow of daffodils which many represent with Spring or Easter, the first big holiday of the year where new life is everywhere.
Summer:
The summer segment will be lined with a hedge, to present the main vista for the public into the garden. There are no Corten steel posts and the sandstone paving is unified, as this season tends to be one where we spend the most time in nature.
The garden is designed to hold a shadow message that links the dangers of not spending time working on your own mental health whilst also encouraging the public to spend more intentional time outdoors, not just in the summer but throughout the whole year in order to improve their mental health and wellbeing.
With thanks to
