The Garden of Somogy
extended all the way to the stream. The original
surfaces next to the buildings were inappropriate
for the intended garden uses and could not remain.
The realisation of the entry, the steps that gave
access to the guest-house, the parking places, the
barbecue and the furnished garden lounge, was
only possible using a series of retaining walls to
accommodate height differences. This stepping of
the ground originates from the requirements of
everyday use, but it melts into the landscape from
the most important viewpoints.
A characteristic gate marks the transition between
the welcoming area associated with the buildings
and the outside world. The gate is the threshold that
allows visitors to understand that they have arrived
at a new place. People can enter this welcoming
area on foot or by car, and when they arrive, they
are faced with the Somogy landscape. The driver
who speeds along the motorway and turns off the
highway and arrives in Bonnya, slowing down a
little bit on the hills of Somogy, turns through the
gate and stops. It must be a real stop; he must
wait for a moment before getting out of the car,
looking around, calming down, for here is the true
landscape of Somogy.
The creation of this welcoming place was a primary
aim of the design. It was necessary to create an
old-fashioned system of terraces and embank-
ments using retaining walls that varied in height
from 500mm to 4m. These enabled the designer to
enlarge the upper area and to create a fruit garden
below, which became the most intimate resting area
within the garden, where low walls for sitting were
incorporated. The undulating lines of the retaining
wall symbolise the outlines of the landscape, but
at the same time, like all the curving, dynamic lines
in the plan, it is a line full of energy, charged with
mental and spiritual ideas, which draws upon the
area’s ancient culture and popular arts.Beyond the guest-house, an enclosed area near to
the stable forms an open-air lounge for community
activities. It includes some characteristic structures,
an open-air oven which provides all the functions of
a kitchen and a sideboard, and an old restored well,
which today has only ornamental value.In the planting, the principle was to use species
that reflected the character of the surrounding
landscape, while also symbolising, in a sensitive
way, the complex relationship between human
beings and place. Next to the house, therefore,
there is a great variety of species, including small
ornamental bushes and perennials, and also some
native species with high ornamental value. As well
as some traditional forms of roses, we can find
peonies, hydrangeas and yuccas, while the south
front garden is planted with herbs typical of a5.6
Elevation of ‘male’ and ‘female’ entrance gates
5.7
Details of the ‘female’ gate
5.8
Photo: ‘male’ gate
5.9
Photo: ‘female’ gate