Name of project: Cox Park

Garden surface: 30 ha

Construction year: 1992

Location: Chicureo, Región Metropolitana, Chile

 

A 30 hectare park spread out around a hill where the native vegetation is adapted to the lack of irrigation It was designed for a large family and set aside nine, private one hectare plots –each with its own house– that overlook a range of different forms visually connected by paths and trails to the common areas.

The access road to the residential buildings runs up the slopes of the hill, providing views of the peaks of Santiago and the Andes beyond. This is where the nine private gardens are located.

Larger trees are planted to the north of the plot to create a forest, which serves the dual function of providing a border and offering a rewarding woodland trail. The meadow areas between these two circulation routes –the house and forest areas– are spaces of transition from the private to the public.

I converted land that had been a field of wonders into a forest garden that one traverses along different paths lined with large trees, coming across copses of oaks, elms, conifers, cedars, sequoias, holly oak and bushes.