Beverly Hills Beauty .. Greystone Park Gardens

A little-known gem of a public park in Beverly Hills....

Greystone Mansion is an impressive Gothic-style estate surrounded by picturesque gardens.

Although more minimal than the landscape originally created in the 1920s, and designed by Paul G. Thiene, the lovely parkland has been administered by the City of Beverly Hills since 1965.

A cultural and historic destination you'll want to explore when visiting Los Angeles, Greystone is the site of special events -- from weddings to home and garden shows. It's a popular location where filming often takes place for television and movies.

Visit www.beverlyhills.org for the park's current Open Hours: Admission is free.

Look for Greystone on AlicesGardenTravelBuzz.com

Arched Blades of Furcraea foetida 'Mediopicta' - Irwin's Garden

Design by Robert Irwin

I love the contemporary aesthetic of Robert Irwin's design of the Palm Garden...
...now on view in Los Angeles at the LACMA campus, where

Architect Renzo Piano has created yet another stunning museum building:

The Resnick Pavilion.

Cor-ten steel - pictured - is one of Irwin's preferred materials, having used it to construct planters and long rectangular raised beds. In outdoor projects, this type of steel weathers to a naturally deep-toned rust color.

The color of these hard-edge containers complements the garden's plant palette, with structural foliage in shades of blue, creamy yellow and green. The layout seems to pop! amidst the grassy sward of the garden's horizontal plane.

Artist Robert Irwin burst on the horticultural scene as the creator of

a controversial garden at the Getty Center,

revisited on Bay Area Tendrils in 2009.

Stalwart and Spiny: Structural Succulents!

While visiting Malibu, I toured Serra Canyon Ranch Nursery. My good fortune included a chance to walk through the landscape with a group that included Gary Lyons, Curator of the Desert Garden at The Huntington. Gary offered enlightening details, such as the identification of strikingly exotic, structural specimens on the property. 

Rarest of the rare: a mature form of Cereus v. monstrose - Photo © Alice Joyce

The property had once been the location of another horticultural destination: Serra Gardens Nursery.

Ceiba speciosa (formerly Chorisia speciosa) .. the magnificent deciduous tree in background: Brilliant Aloes blooming in foreground.

(Photos Copyright © Alice Joyce)

Arrays of drought-tolerant succulents of various sizes; potted and ready to plant.

For more information about plant availability at the nursery's growing grounds, visit:

www.serracanyonranch.com

BIG RED SUN .. Landscape Design

Big Red Sun

Venice, California!

I stopped here on the way to L.A.X. Airport.

Luckily, I could open the gate and stroll around the courtyard, although the business is closed on Sunday. The large-scale planters overflowing with the bold rosette forms of drought-tolerant succulents are admirable. The Big Red Sun approach is full-service, as the signs indicate; including the creation of unique vessels in a variety of shapes from saucer-like to tall, narrow containers, and dramatic rectangular planting containers that function as stunning focal points - be it for an indoor or outdoor environment.

Big Red Sun provides garden design each step of the way.

Next trip, I'll be certain to catch them on an open day.

(Thank you Selena, for your comment and the invitation. The horticultural panoply on display in the courtyard along with the streetside plantings... it's quite the visual feast! I'll make a note that Sunday is your day of rest:)

Left my heart in the Santa Monica Mountains!

Anigozanthos 'Big Red' Photos Copyright © Alice Joyce

Red Kangaroo Paw from Western Australia blooming in Santa Monica Place gardenscape.

Look for an endless parade of Southern California gardens & mountain landscapes in the weeks ahead on Bay Area Tendrils

& Alice's Garden Travel Buzz

I'll be reporting on my sojourn to the Los Angeles area,

where the Malibu Garden Club invited me to speak on...

21st Century Gardens: Movements, Projects, Trends

The Leaf & Petal Co. is located

across the street from the brilliantly renovated dreamscape for shoppers - Santa Monica Place,

opposite downtown's pedestrian-friendly Third Street Promenade.

Elegant Symmetry - Lush Greenery ... Getty Villa

An Italian Stone Pine graces an alcove near the entrance to the Getty Villa.

Architectural embellishments link the interior of the Getty Villa Museum to the exterior spaces. An inlaid marble pattern replicates a floor in the ancient Villa dei Papiri, at the Villa's Temple of Herakles.

In the Outer Peristyle garden, a bronze sculpture is placed as it would appear at the Villa dei Papiri.

Machado and  Silvetti Associates of Boston redesigned the Getty Villa site, a 12-year undertaking. Upon reopening in 2006, a contemporary take on an ancient structure emerged on the Getty campus: A 450-seat open-air classical amphitheater; approached from a new elevated walkway. T, my traveling companion, waits patiently.

In the skillfully balanced layout of the Outer Peristyle, pomegranate trees and Grecian laurels 

provide structure, abetted by sweet violets. The Outer Peristyle's formal pool ... edged in ivy topiaries. 

Gallica, damask and musk roses create background effects. 

Decorative paving enhances the garden's symmetry.

An inviting destination year-round: Admission to Getty Villa is free, however, advance timed tickets are required.

The Lion Head Fountain adorns the Herb Garden, planted with medicinal, culinary, & species with religious significance. Fruit and fragrance meld here amid plums and limes, olive and quince, peach and fig trees; the earth blanketed in ground-covering lemon balm.

The Inner Peristyle garden utilizes motifs from nature, such as Acanthus leaves.

The Inner Peristyle's intimate confines center upon a lovely reflecting pool, 

while marble basins punctuate each corner of the garden.

Women drawn to a stream are replicated in the garden's bronze sculptures.

Click on links below - Getty Villa Part I & II

Art and Culture at the Getty Villa

Trompe L'Oeil

Immersed in Art & Culture .. Getty Villa - East Garden

The intimate East Garden within the grounds of the Getty Villa ...

a walled santuary space where you'll want to linger.

Delightful feverfew .. among the plantings in the East Garden;

 reflecting an array of species known from the ancient Mediterranean,

with sycamore and laurel trees providing shade.

The wall fountain represents a replica of a mosaic and shell fountain from the House of the Large Fountain in Pompeii. In A.D. 79 Mt. Vesuvius erupted, burying Pompeii and Herculaneum. Embellishments emerge at every turn. Mosaic work, enlivened by images of birds amid colorful patterning, is likened to wall paintings found inside Roman ruins.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION....

The heads of bronze civets, catlike creatures spout splashing streams of water into a marble basin, in the East Garden's central fountain. Adorning the wall fountain are marble theatrical masks, prevalent elements in Roman art of the first century A.D.

It's easy to get lost in the detailing of the intricate mosaic and shell work.

The source of the water flowing from the wall fountain.

Detail:  Bronze Civets & Marble Basin

Fountains act as engaging focal points within the secluded setting.

 Evergreen strawberry trees (Arbutus unedo) line up along one wall of the garden: the ripening spiny fruit appears like dangling ornaments set off by the glossy foliage. Fragrant clusters of  bell-like flowers appear alongside the fruit, which turns from a bright gold to deep red-orange.

Acanthus leaves are depicted again and again in ancient architectural elements, 

emerging in decorations carved in stone and in wood, in columns and friezes

dating back to Greco-Roman times.

Click on link below for more on the Getty Villa Malibu

Part I - Trompe l'Oeil

Trompe l'oeil .. Lyrical Illusion - The Getty Villa Malibu

The Getty Villa - Malibu, California

Part I

The Malibu site opened in 1974 as the original J. Paul Getty Museum;

the architecture, patterned after the Villa dei Papiri,

a Roman country house dating to the first century. 

Restored Trompe l'oeil detail.

The Villa closed for renovation in 1997, just as The Getty Center opened to great fanfare in Los Angeles. By 2006 the cultural cognoscenti were abuzz! The Getty Villa reopened with stunning exhibition spaces, presenting an unparalleled showcase for Greco-Roman & Etruscan antiquities, and an overall stunning redesign by architects, Machado and Silvetti Associates.

The historically accurate Trompe l'oeil paintings of the Outer Peristyle garden are highlighted here. The luminous architecture of the Getty Villa, the landscape design & plantings, sculptural treasures, and classically arcadian gardens to follow in future posts.

UNDER CONSTRUCTION...

 Long view of Outer Peristyle - ceiling adornment & inlaid design of walkway.

Draped garlands, decorated columns, and window cornices are among the peristyle's ornate elements.

The refined color palette of the Trompe l'oeil painting adds grace and beauty to the surroundings.

Click on link below for feature.... The Getty Center

Robert Irwin Design: Getty Center Central Garden

Artist Robert Irwin designed the Getty Center Central Garden in Los Angeles. 

The Azalea Maze is a focal point, while curving swathes of corten steel function as the garden's contoured retaining walls. Seated on a bench nestled in a secluded niche, I could appreciate the rusty patina of the metal, a sharp contrast to the sensory delights of flowers and foliage.

Prominent fossilized remains are a tactile quality of The Getty Center's Roman classic travertine, which covers a staggering 1.2 million square feet of walls and pavement.

Staggered levels of terraced planting create an amphitheater-like setting in the pool area.
Unusual plant combinations reflect Irwin's statement:

"...the garden is like a painting, not so much concerned with species and origin as with color, texture and conditioned relations."

The garden layout echoes a natural ravine in the existing topography.

Photos © Alice Joyce

Zigzag walkways traverse the hillside's gentle descent. Reaching the plaza, water cascades over the stone wall, directing one's focus down toward the Central Garden's reflecting pool.

"Listen to the changing sound of the stream... boulders have been placed...to create a sound sculpture."

Barbara Hepworth sculpture below:

It's easy to spend a good part of a day at The Getty, taking in the exhibitions and outdoor sculpture gardens, enjoying a meal al fresco,  not to mention, adding your own opinion to the ongoing dialogue about Robert Irwin's Central Garden.

Flamboyant Flora at The Getty Center - Part I

Room With A View .. My Window at The Ambrose

Reaching out...

 to frame a memorable Santa Monica sunset from my window at The Ambrose:

Hotel rooms designed with feng shui principles in mind. 
Restful.....

The Ambrose in Santa Monica, California.

Flamboyant Flora .. Interlude at The Getty Center

The Getty Center Central Garden ... Part I

Angels Trumpet, a golden Brugmansia exudes fragrance in the evening garden.

Always wished I had the right place in my garden to grow Brugmansia 'Charles Grimaldi.'

Autumnal fireworks at The Getty are marked by flamboyant bougainvillea.

The Getty Center Central Garden has received buckets of press coverage

since opening in December, 1997.

An update on the design will follow in another feature.

Bamboo Muhly .. Muhlenbergia dumosa.
A specimen that captivated me, planted in large, prominently placed containers,

this grass or member of the grass family boasts a rather bristly texture and stately form.

Stunning color on an evergreen Tibouchina shrub - deserving of the name, Princess Flower.

Oxalis regnellii 'Atropurpurea'

A tree ...

... laden with pomegranates.

Ooh la la!

Part II to follow....

Santa Monica Hideaway - The Ambrose

The Ambrose Hotel

Befitting the Southern California locale, this lovely hotel features in-ground and container plantings enlivened by colorful, textural succulents and cycads. Santa Monica is a seaside town - an 8-square-mile community tucked within the city limits of Los Angeles, bolstered by a beautiful beach, the famous Pier, Ferris Wheel, and the vibrant 3rd Street promenade for dining, shopping, and night life. On a previous L.A. sojourn, I discovered this boutique hotel about a mile or so from the ocean. In a lovely part of Santa Monica, The Ambrose is walking distance to hip Montana Avenue, a stretch filled with restaurants, shops and galleries. Won over by the convenient, continental breakfast buffet with fresh organic fruit, I was smitten by the hotel's iconic London Taxi that allows guests to hop a ride to nearby attractions.The Ambrose is often fully booked, so when I planned my spontaneous recent trip, I shifted my dates slightly in order to stay 3 consecutive nights.

In the hotel's sequestered front garden, a pond and the sounds of falling water add up to a cool, soothing effect. The hotel's interior decor puts a contemporary twist on Arts & Crafts style, for a serenely comfortable atmosphere.

An Asian influence emerges in the layout of this enclosed space.

Variegated Aeonium plays off the dark strappy leaves of a Phormium in sunny, streetside plantings, while Kniphofias punctuate plantings along the front driveway.

The Ambrose composts, recycles, and as of last year, 

the hotel can boast LEED Silver certification for its conservations efforts, use of non-toxic products, and commonsense practices such as windows that open to let in fresh air! 

Landscape Architect:  Troller - Mayer Associates, Glendale, CA

Adieu to Malibu .. Adamson House Part III

Historic Adamson House Landscape

"Malibu's earliest history begins at this site where the Chumash people lived in a thriving village they called Humaliwo meaning,

"the surf sounds loudly.""

Part III ... final vignettes to say Adieu.


UNDER CONSTRUCTION ...

"Malibu modern history begins around 1802 when Jose Tapia received a Spanish land grant that enabled him to establish the Malibu Rancho - the first large ranch in this area. "

Links to Historic Adamson House, Part I & Part II

Brilliantly Patterned Malibu Tile

City of Angels Sojourn - Adamson House

City of Angels Sojourn - Adamson House, Part I

Dombeya cayeuxii  

Adamson House gardens - Malibu, California.

On a recent City of Angels sojourn, I encountered the extravagant, dangling blooms of a mature, pink snowball tree.

 Colorful tiles from the Malibu Potteries 

adorn historic Adamson House and an expansive landscape 0f venerable trees.

A post in two parts:

On this trip I revisited the gardens of the Getty Center in Los Angeles and the Getty Villa in Malibu. 

They'll soon be featured here.

A serendipitous meeting - one that would not have taken place one minute later or earlier, 

resulted in an opportunity to tour the gardens of the Adamson House:

a lovely property overlooking the Pacific Ocean that had somehow escaped my travel writer's radar.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places,

and a showcase for colorful tilework, Adamson House is adjacent to the Malibu Lagoon Museum, 

situated in the house's attached 5-car garage.

Although part of the California State Parks,

the Adamson House and surrounding gardens receive loving support from the

Friends of the Historic Adamson House & Malibu Lagoon Museum.

Link to the Adamson House on Bay Area Tendrils Garden Travel Buzz 

- Column on the Right -

More to follow!

An old color chart for drawing inks ... one of my favorite things.

I pooh-poohed the West Coast for decades, taking my very first flight east to Boston at age 18.

My plan included a visit to Cape Cod, but it was April - the off-season, 

a time of year when driving was the only option. Instead, I took a train to Cape Ann on the North Shore, 

where I returned a couple months later to live and work.

On my next flight, I traveled north to Montreal, followed by an, 'if it's Tuesday this must be Belgium' trip to Europe.

Never would I have imagined living in Northern California, or looking forward to sojourns 

to sun-drenched Los Angeles, the City of Angels.

And that brings up the subject of color. 

When I lived in Chicago I preferred  black clothing, and earth tones for decor.

Since identifying a visceral need for blue skies and warmer temperatures, 

...hence the move West, I've embraced vivid hues. 

Be it personal adornment, garden ornament, or a planting scheme that juxtaposes brilliantly saturated 'hot' tones,

I now find bold colors uplifting.

 Your comments on color are invited!