• Home
  • Houses
    • Outside
    • Celeb, Show & Historic Houses
    • Our Houses
  • Kitchens
    • Blk&Wht Kitchen
    • Blue Kitchen
    • Gray & Neutral Kitchens
    • Green Kitchen
    • Red, Orange, Purple Kitchen
    • White Kitchen
    • Yellow Kitchen
    • Rustic Kitchen
    • Wood Kitchen
    • Modern Kitchen
    • Kitchen & Cabinet Features
    • Sinks & Faucets
  • Decor
    • Accessories
    • Collecting
    • Color
    • Domestic Details
    • Holiday
    • For Kids
    • Laundry-Utility-Mudrooms
    • For Pets
    • Picture Walls & Windows
    • Rooms
    • Rugs
  • Bathrooms
    • Cottage Bath
    • Eclectic Bath
    • Modern Bath
    • Traditional Bath
    • Powder Room
    • Bath Features
  • Cooking
  • Press
  • About
  • Contact

Atticmag

Home Décor & Home Cooking

  • Home
  • Houses
    • Outside
    • Celeb, Show & Historic Houses
    • Our Houses
  • Kitchens
    • Blk&Wht Kitchen
    • Blue Kitchen
    • Gray & Neutral Kitchens
    • Green Kitchen
    • Red, Orange, Purple Kitchen
    • White Kitchen
    • Yellow Kitchen
    • Rustic Kitchen
    • Wood Kitchen
    • Modern Kitchen
    • Kitchen & Cabinet Features
    • Sinks & Faucets
  • Decor
    • Accessories
    • Collecting
    • Color
    • Domestic Details
    • Holiday
    • For Kids
    • Laundry-Utility-Mudrooms
    • For Pets
    • Picture Walls & Windows
    • Rooms
    • Rugs
  • Bathrooms
    • Cottage Bath
    • Eclectic Bath
    • Modern Bath
    • Traditional Bath
    • Powder Room
    • Bath Features
  • Cooking
  • Press
  • About
  • Contact
You are here: Home / Houses / Outside / Architectural Museum Garden

Architectural Museum Garden

October 15, 2014 by Jane F 4 Comments

architectural museum garden - walkway approach to Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagViews of an architectural museum garden designed by a 20th century contemporary artist.

My passion for gardens was ignited last week with a visit to the DIA Art Foundation. A boutique modern art museum in New York’s Hudson Valley, DIA  Beacon opened in 2003 in a 300,000 square foot former Nabisco box printing factory overlooking the Hudson River. An architectural museum garden is relatively rare — especially one designed by an artist whose work is featured in that museum. But the commission went to Robert Irwin, a Los Angeles artist who I happened to know during my time as an art student at UCLA, my alma mater. Mr. Irwin is a conceptual artist so an architectural garden must have been fascinating for him to design.

The scale of the garden is modest in comparison to some homes in Europe where gardens are the size of parks. There is nothing as grand as English designer Anouska Hempel’s outdoor dining room that I featured in my Outdoor Living Walls post.

At DIA, the trees act as a barrier to the river view from the parking lot and entry. If you are intent on seeing the exhibitions inside, and don’t go exploring, it can come as a surprise that there’s anything more than giant hedges.

architectural museum garden - walkway into planted area of Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagThe plan is actually is simple. It’s a grid based on rows and boxes intersected by two different types of interesting walkways. One of my special interests is the way gardens are navigated. Garden pathways may look humble but they are akin to the street plan of a city.

architectural museum garden - walkway approach to Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagSeveral rows of enormously tall, carefully pruned trees begin near the building and screen out Hudson River views.  I estimate the trees are 50 to 60 feet high. They are planted close together so their branches merge.

architectural museum garden - walkway into planted area of Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagThe combined branches have been cut flat across the top and beveled on the corners. I would love to see the gardeners at work here in the Spring. We’ve already had a glimpse (above) of the wooden walkway, passing between the main tree groupings which become more intense at the center. Here’s the approach — a raised wooden ramp. Tree beds are bordered by steel railings, which also edge the walkway.

architectural museum garden - center point of the wood walkway of Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagThe center is marked by mitered planks that remind me of 18th century floors found in Swedish manor houses. Today, it make require an architectural museum garden to create this level of refined detail.

architectural museum garden - deck overlooking the Hudson River at Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagAt the end of the passage way is an open deck with a pair of ordinary wood benches. There, visitors can sit and enjoy views far-off views of the Hudson River. I was so taken by the scale of the benches — which are so small you almost miss them — I never turned around to take a photograph of the view. But great Hudson River views are far more common than this type of garden! This is a wonderful place to sit and daydream or listen to music on a sunny day.

architectural museum garden - filled honeycomb cement tile walkway of Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagWalkways and surrounding paved areas are especially interesting aspects of garden design, I think. This stretch of honeycomb cement tiles is filled in.

architectural museum garden - grass filled honeycomb cement tile on edges of Robert Irwin designed garden at DIA Foundation, Beacon, NY - atticmagCloser to the building, and in other parts of the garden, the honeycomb is filled with grass. The tufts remind me of a dimensional carpet — a living carpet that will change with the seasons. If only I could recreate this in my yard!

Copy and paste link to quick-share this post:  http://bit.ly/1o9yOhR

Filed Under: Outside Tagged With: architectural museum garden, architectural pruning, Atticmag, cement tile walkway, DIA Beacon, outdoor living walls

Comments

  1. Janet says

    October 15, 2014 at 10:44 am

    Interesting! 🙂

    Reply
  2. Libby says

    November 7, 2014 at 11:48 am

    I’ve never been to DIA and now we don’t live anywhere near! I do remember passing the main building, on the train, when it was , I think a Nabisco plant! Maybe next summer when we go North….

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Scampston Hall Walled Garden - Atticmag says:
    June 1, 2015 at 7:52 am

    […] rooms defined by hedges which I’ve detailed in past posts on Gardens Most Amazing and the Architectural Museum Garden at the DIA Beacon museum. Scampston also boasts pleached lime trees which are trained so the tops […]

    Reply
  2. 7 Outdoor Home Décor Ideas - Atticmag says:
    June 18, 2015 at 1:06 am

    […] Used Decoratively. Grass used as “grout” with paving stones is not a new idea. My post on the Architectural Museum Garden at Beacon, NY showed the way artist Robert Irwin intermixed grass with paved walkways. Around this […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This blog is kept spam free by WP-SpamFree.

Home Decor

mini two-compartment architectural planter by Vagabond Vintage - via Atticmag

Mini Architectural Planters

September 5, 2018 By Jane F Leave a Comment

linen bed sheets - Italian linen triple hemstich linen bed sheets -Cuddledown via Atticmag

Making Sense of Linen Bed Sheets

May 30, 2018 By Jane F 2 Comments

ready made curtain hack for store bought linen panels - aticmag

Ready-Made Curtain Panels Hack

May 7, 2018 By Jane F 5 Comments

cobalt blue front door - Southern Living via Atticmag

Front Door Blues

May 14, 2017 By Jane F 2 Comments

peony pink - vase of pink peony flowers - Pinterest via Atticmag

Peony Pink Power

April 24, 2017 By Jane F 1 Comment

Recent Comments

  • justin leon on Kitchen Cabinet Pull-Out Ideas
  • Jane on Making Sense of Linen Bed Sheets
  • Sherrie on Unfitted English Kitchens
  • Marilyn on Whimsical Bicycle Vanity
  • ann rattay on Vintage Limoges & Silver Table

atticmag

Delish veggie stew with couscous and almonds at Pa Delish veggie stew with couscous and almonds at Pangea, the pop up restaurant at the CIA Hyde Park. Students run Pangea like real pros. Kudos.
Just mixed fresh Citrus Salsa. Full recipe tomorro Just mixed fresh Citrus Salsa. Full recipe tomorrow at Http://www.atticmag.com
JaneSense: 12 Brussels sprouts stemmed & halved, 4 JaneSense: 12 Brussels sprouts stemmed & halved, 4 peeled & chunked up potatoes, a sliced onion and shallot, any dried herbs, S&P, and 3 tbsp EVOO. 400 degrees/40 minutes, turning once. My family fave!
The gorgeous kitchen @ The Bocuse restaurant at th The gorgeous kitchen @ The Bocuse restaurant at the Culinary Institute for Restaurant Week
Just off the vine Cortland apples for cobbler. Just off the vine Cortland apples for cobbler.
Apple Maple cobbler glorifies apple season. Get th Apple Maple cobbler glorifies apple season. Get the recipe:http://bit.ly1X4GU8D
Flavor chameleon: zucchini soup. Here garnished wi Flavor chameleon: zucchini soup. Here garnished with summer corn, curry and chives. But so many ways to flavor it.
Sourdough boule that friends adore. Baking season Sourdough boule that friends adore. Baking season is coming soon.
How gorgeous is this dahlia grown by our pal Lorra How gorgeous is this dahlia grown by our pal Lorraine?
Crisp Rosemary Roasted potatoes with fresh herbs h Crisp Rosemary Roasted potatoes with fresh herbs have just been added to Atticmag. Easy and healthy family recipe.
Green onions, so beautiful in their color variatio Green onions, so beautiful in their color variations.
Out to lunch on the terrace of a restaurant today Out to lunch on the terrace of a restaurant today when I spot a comment left in the corner on one of the building's stones by a witty child. Jurassic Park lives on
Load More... Follow on Instagram
Tweets by atticmag

Copyright © 2021 · Magazine Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in