Pomaro – Val Luretta, Piacenza

I love to design environments that are successfully productive and seductive in aesthetic, ecological and even metaphysical terms. When Dutch architect Geert Koster invited me to meet the owner of a stretch of land for whom he was designing a new house in Val Luretta, I could not imagine I was about to meet a former schoolmate of mine, and that we would refresh our friendship thanks to the project for her garden in Pomaro. I am extremely interested in the connection between wilderness and design, so much so that I tend to do as little as possible against a site’s natural inclination; hence, it came naturally to see this garden as a loving, low-maintenance, enclosure-free place. The ground – where a single, isolated oak tree grew – was naturally surrounded by fodder cultivated fields, and it was meant to stay that way in the plan too: an open space stretching out to the horizon, constantly connecting to the local wilderness. A garden where plants would be free to move, spontaneously reproducing themselves between the new house and all the empty spaces, all the way to the draining knolls on the edge. This project is animated by a vast flower prairie surrounding the house, from the entrance to the yard where it is built; here, I asked gardeners to lay a bed of black gravel, where plants freely locate to create open environments that can accommodate several functions in an unconventional way. On the opposite side, a simple rectangular lawn connects to the house through a wide concrete terrace, surrounded by perennials and decorative Gramineae, whilst the steppingstones on gravel are home to several vagabond plans coming from the Cascina Bollate nursery. For earth embankments, passivated iron stringcourses were designed to follow the spontaneous winding of the hillside as though on a topographical map, whilst the extravagant dilations of the Val Luretta clayey soil are tamed thanks to a special selection of bushes including Tamarix gallica, Hippophae ramnoides, Rosa canina, Cotinus coggygria, Salix alba, Teucrium fruticans and of generous, adaptable perennial plants such as Aster lateriflorus and Euphorbia characias. This modern wild garden is designed to establish a dialogue with both the farmed and spontaneous landscape of Val Luretta. The space is organised into wide fields, that review the site’s natural and functional potential. Around the house, large gravel stretches and a wide, scenic mown lawn welcome pioneer species and define outdoor convivial spaces. All the edges are prairies, with different levels of decorative impact and water intake, where Gramineae and perennial grass prevail. Vegetation matches are inspired to the local natural landscape, to enhance their aesthetic, sensory and biodiversity potential. Architecture is designed by Geert Koster. (Images by Andrea Martiradonna).