VILLA GARDEN Griebnitzsee

The site of this exclusive residential building, next to the Griebnitzsee lake and close to Potsdam’s palace and gardens, didn’t always look like this. For 28 years, the property’s access to the lake was blocked by the fortified border of the German Democratic Republic, made up of the Berlin Wall and the Kolonnenweg, just 2.5 kilometres away from the Glienicke Bridge. A few decades on, hardly any of that is still visible. In its place, there is a singular vista over the calm lake and forest between the Hirschberg and Moritzberg hills. A modern villa with a shelly limestone façade (a location that served as the set for a well-known German television series) constitutes the centre of the new garden.

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THE GARDEN
Three different levels divide the garden into areas with different perspectives. The client requested a low-key design that would permit them to take in the surrounding landscape, but also one which employed high-end materials and references to the residential building. The home, in the best sense of the phrase, extends into the garden via succinct terraces. A light-coloured path made from fair-faced concrete links all levels of the garden, from the street down to the lakeshore. Fine-quality oak terraces of the same type but different dimensions connect to it. The location lends itself to splendid garden parties.

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DETAILS & MATERIALS
A garden featuring clear divisions forms the entrance to the property at street level. There, dark-coloured steel containers hold various compositions of plants, producing striking outlines. The specially-designed slatted fence along the property boundary is constructed from the same material. The steel slats appear to move, revealing and blocking views. High-quality travertine paving stones and a bespoke shelf for firewood anchor the driveway and the off-street parking to the property. On the lakeshore, lush grasses sway in the wind and frame the view of the jetty.

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