Sochi

Complex vertical planning, level differences of up to 10 meters, blind creeks, a small river which flushes from time to time spitting out 16 times more water than usual, 6 meters of snowload, and sudden whirlwinds capable of bringing rain to any part of the estate - those were the existing natural features of our very first landscape design project which we did along with the architectural and interior design development for the same customer.

Year: 2006

Country: Russia

City: Sochi

Space: 1500 sq.m.

When we met him, the customer had already started building the mansion. Cedarwood and floor-to-ceiling windows would give you a perfect idea of its future grandeur. We were commissioned to develop the interior as well as design the architecture of a pool, a spa and two guest houses. We didn’t want the pool to block the beautiful view to the mountains. And so we decided to construct it underground and to build another shallow one on top to reflect the beauty of the nature. The upper pool would be an overflow one. The flowing water would make a waterfall below to visually hide the spa area. Wide flat white stones were put to level the water. We tried different spacing options until we made sure that you could go down the stones without getting out of step. The staircase which connects the both levels is visually levitating.

When we worked on this project, we did our best to arrange the elements in such a way that they never blocked the view to the mountains. This is why we cached the barbeque area behind a glass wall. We glazed the gazebo too, installed garden furniture inside to make it usable all year round. All the glass walls can slide away together. We found that feature quite elegant. The interior design was pretty innovative too. One of the two guest houses was dedicated to socialism with Lenin portraits and red flags on the walls. The other guesthouse with its gold painted logs was about merciless capitalism. There were 4 bedroom units in the mansion, each with a wardrobe and a living area. The number suggested clear associations with the four seasons and the four winds. We converted the rooms into a Scandinavian north winter bedroom, an African south one, a Japanese east and an Italian west bedroom with a bathtub standing on paws.