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Touches such as the step-over troughs described in the accompanying text are meant to please discerning clients, but if they aren't set up with functionality and serviceability in mind, they are likely to become irritating to their owners before much time passes.
This is where our background in pool service comes into play, as we're always conscious of the importance of building a pool with maintenance as a key consideration. In the case of the small in-deck troughs, for example, we knew well enough to plumb numerous return lines so the runnels would have adequate circulation from end to end.
This particular client also wanted to be able to turn each feature on individually or operate them in custom combinations. Although everything here is part of one body of water, this desire meant that we had to set up separate plumbing systems for each and every effect - not to mention install two of Jandy's Aqualink control units, a remote unit and nine transformers to handle the pool, the spa, all landscape and pool/spa lighting, gate operations, the outdoor bar area and more.
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One particularly unusual feature of this project was the wiring and hanging of a large crystal chandelier from the center of the patio cover just over the spa.
--M. & R.B.
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David Tardiff's design work is far from monolithic. Where theatricality might be the order of the day for one set of clients, he responds to other clients in other ways - as is the case in the next project we'll explore, where his work is all about sport and filling the yard with play areas and toys for children of all ages.
In doing so, he starts from formal points of departure, including pergolas and their wonderful columns, as well as an elegant approach from the house to the pool are via grand entrance steps that encircle the raised spa and carry visitors to the elevated level of the backyard.
The spa area is formal as well, with water flowing into a step-over trough that pours directly into the pool. The step-over not only softens the look of the spa but also separates the barbecue area from the fireplace patio and clearly defines boundaries for various functions within the yard. The barbecue and fireplace patios are shaded by the pergolas, with beautiful potted vines climbing the columns and draping flowers across the fretwork overhead.
The watershape, however, is all about play.
In building it, for example, we used faux rock to create a dark, hidden grotto that sits behind a raucous cascade from an overhead rock that splashes into a small ravine. We also built a second grotto in start contrast to the first: Each has a flat sitting area, but where the first is noisy and active, the second is round and sunny and the water does no more than trickle from hollowed rocks next to it.
In addition to these hiding places, we also set up a waterslide with access steps tucked behind the rockwork where they stay invisible. The 22-foot slide twists and turns and finally pushes the children through a wall of water that surges from the top rocks.
Here, as in his other projects, Tardiff uses the watershapes's rocks, deck stones and interior finish to create focal points of color and texture. In this case, all elements are in the same color range - grays and soft greens and earth tones spread across a large canvas. The rocks are rounded and curved, mimicking the contours of the round spa and the curved lines of the poured-in-place coping and steps. The flat stone on the deck is rough-hewn and uneven but framed by the curves of the pool, spa and steps. Each area of the yard - the watershapes, the decks and landscape areas - is perceived in sequence as the eye follows the curves from the entrance up to the rockwork and the side patios. Each space has its designated, distinct function, yet all of them are linked through Tardiff's careful selection of colors and textures into a cohesive, living painting.
Once again, it was a program that called for multiple plumbing systems, massive boosters and complex control units that governed everything from the waterfalls and slides to the lighting for the yard's miniature golf course. In this case, the architect wanted to be sure the water was always playful, always inviting, always in motion - a constant presence that travels as nature and gravity dictate before rippling across the edge surface of the pool. |
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