Landscaping Ideas

The gardens and landscapes designed by Fernando Caruncho, based in Madrid, are spectacular contemporary creations based on ancient principles and elements of garden art: geometry and symmetry; stone and water; bay, box, cypress, and olive. Caruncho’s designs emerge from the great garden traditions of Spain where he was born and educated and undertook his first commissions. This monograph, the first published on his work, includes spectacular photographs of 23 gardens, as well as beautiful images of his plans and drawings.

Caruncho discusses his design philosophy and influences in a substantial interview with the authors. The garden-academies of ancient Greek philosophers – along with his own study of Greek and Roman philosophy – proved a significant source of inspiration. Important historic gardens – the Alhambra, the great 14th century Spanish palace; Zen-inspired Japanese gardens; the Boboli Gardens of 16th century Florence; and French formal gardens designed by André Le Nôtre and others – were equally consequential.

Featured in this volume are private and public gardens throughout Spain – Madrid, Bilbao, Barcelona, Majorca, and elsewhere – and one in Biarritz, France. Ranging from small urban spaces to grand country estates and even to a spectacular landscape formed entirely of wheat, Caruncho’s garden designs combine influences from the past and present in masterly compositions that exemplify the formal garden for the new millennium.

Mirrors of Paradise: The Gardens of Fernando Caruncho