Garden design, november 2007

Southern California landscape architect Pamela Palmer introduces water - actual and metaphorical - in a series of outdoor rooms, on Rocky Point Road - a Zigrang Construction project. How else would you make the most of a site that boasts a spectacular ocean view but no way to reach the beach?   

Palos Verdes Estates is a sprawling coastal enclave south of Los Angeles where rugged cliffs drop dramatically to meet the curling Pacific surf below. So instead of trying to trump the magnificent view at this bluff-top property, landscape Palmer decided to showcase it. And where the ocean wasn't visible, she used watery allusion to draw visitors into each space and lead to the next, until finally, like an exclamation point, the shimmering waves of Lunada Bay are revealed. "The idea," Palmer says, "was to create a procession."

To read the full article, view the image slideshow.