INSIDE (Sintra Cascais 2023)
Project not presented- Private Client
1. The Site
My client call me in spring in order to organize the garden of one of his house in Cascais.
To get there from Lisbon 2 options are possible, North side (Sintra) or South side (Cascais), as the property is situated in the Sintra-Cascais Nature Park with 14 450.84 ha. The landscape is specific by his topography. The Moors castle illustrated the slope at the highest point of view of the area, to finish into the sea, at Magoito beach. This is a very touristic area, but the property is situated in an exceptional, and quite area really protected from the noise, a peaceful area to enjoy observing birds.
The landscape is not familiar to me, windy, dry, with a huge slope, and a view in the south part if the park, pointing on Cascais.
Sintra Mountain is a small eruptive massif - the Roman Moon promontory - set before the ocean and climbing up to 528 meters at Cruz Alta. Once a bushland domain the mountain has changed its features after the introduction of several forest essences. Today, in certain areas you can breath the air of a dense forest contrasting with the vegetation of the coastal area or the limestone platform in São João das Lampas
This area is which border Sintra (Granit) is made of Limestone & Marls formatted during the Jurassic superior.
The climatic conditions are Characterized by a warm and temperate atmosphere. There is more rainfall in the winter than in the summer in Cascais.
The average temperature is 15,7 C. There is an approximate 635mm of precipitation. The location is in the northern hemisphere.
I was immediately interest in the slope of the site. Romans, Visigoths, Arabs remained long in the area, leaving deep scars: influenced architecture & the system of collecting water. I choose to link the topography of the site to the moors castle of Sintra with the Alhambra in Grenade, and more specifically the Generaliffe, managing water.
2. The Concept
The site survey had revealed that the garden is perched on a strip of land 40 meters wide and 140 meters long, on the upper of Sintra Cascais Reserve from level 164 north side – 135 south side. Historically the reference in term of garden adapted to this site is the Hispano Arab Garden, and more precisely the Alhambra Gardens in Grenada Spain, built and alimented on water by an Arab innovation. Bringing water from a River 6 km far away from the site.
The slope is more than 20%, 30 meters separates the highest point from the lowest point (164-135) of this site. Managing water is possible on quite a slope. H Suggestion to limit the study to the first 70 meters, the limit will be the level 145. The part between level 145 and 135 is too dry as you can see on the map up (Yellow area).
Level 164 the street
Level 162 House floor 0
Level 160 House floor -1
Level 145 Limit project
Level 154 Pool
Level 140 Tennis Court
Level 135 old entrance west oriented
3. The Design The Scheme Silvia Crowe
“The moors had a veneration for nature and a respect of individual worth, rather than for mass effects. “ p27
“In Generaliffe the walls are plain, the water comes from hidden sources, and the great water stairway is roughly formed, the channels in the balustrades looking as if they had been scooped out of wet clay” p28
Book in reference. GARDEN DESIGN BY SYLVIA CROWE
In Hispano- Moorish gardens Moon.
The patio de la acequia is a symbol of Fortress, Water(purity) and Origin(heaven)
The Nasrid’s managed irrigation in Grenade with clever novating technics apply able in this garden. They brought water from a River situated 6 km from the Palace buy ingenious canals, acequias, runnels.
Podcast pelouse
4. The Masterplan - end of the project
