The Power of Great Design
1920’s Southern California Estate Returns to its
Original Magnificence
Landscape Architecture by Heather Lenkin, AIA, ASLA
IL VILLINO ROSA – An estate touched by some of the most influential architects in Pasadena’s history, this San Rafael area home is a gem of Italian Revival Architecture. The estate is credited to the conceptual genius of Reginald Johnson of Johnson, Kaufman and Coate, Architects. Barring an addition to the North side of the house, between 1931 and 1956 by Sylvanus Marston, the house is reflective of Johnson’s love for the Mediterranean style. As an architect he was responsible for the Four Seasons Biltmore Hotel Ballroom, and the Mediterranean revival design of wealthy locations in Montecito, and Santa Barbara. Today as inspired its history, the estate stands ready to blossom again as on the of the most majestic homes of Southern California.
A breathtaking 1920’s Reginald Johnson Mediterranean Revival estate with four and one half of gardens overlooking the Arroyo Seco and San Gabriel Mountains in Pasadena California, is the scene of the most recent renovation, update and restoration work by internationally recognized landscape architect Heather Lenkin, AIA, ASLA. In addition to being a family home, the home has been featured in films, books and magazines – as early as 1931!
Following in the footsteps of an amazing cast of incredibly distinguished architects and landscape architects who have already worked on the property, Lenkin was hired in 2008 to breathe life again into the fantastic grounds. The landscape was originally conceived by F. Garvin Hodson in his 1919 drawings of the estate. From 1915 – 1930 world-renowned German landscape architect Paul Thiene worked his magic on the property. Subsequent architectural work was performed by the offices of Marston, Van Pelt & Maybury, in 1930. The present owners worked with the highly respected landscape architect Ruth Shelton in 1988 when they purchased the home.
Lenkin’s interest has been in recreating the original grandeur of the landscape, whilst adding drought tolerant and California native plant material to the landscape. She found much inspiration in the work of the original architects landscape design linking the home and the gardens in a formal Italianate manner. She wisely divided the property into manageable projects with five separate zones.
The formal entry is on axis to the front door, and still contains the original 80’ long boxwood hedges lining either side of the drive. The main entry to the home stayed true to its original concept of a vast courtyard entry to the two-story home surrounded by lush trees and foliage.
The guest compound includes with private walled gardens and a walled orchard. The orchard has been renovated and updated, and now includes a 15th century knot gardens with herbs as well as a spring garden that contains hundreds of bluebells, and a desert inspired ‘inferno’ garden.
Thank you to Heather for hosting the recent Garden Conservancy symposium “Gardens That Re-Make
Themselves” study tour visit to this beautiful estate. It was a beautiful place to end our great weekend!
Heather has been a friend to the Garden Conservancy for many events;
it has been my pleasure to visit her own gorgeous gardens (first seen on the Garden Conservancy
“Open Days Tour) for the past five
years and hear her lecture at the GC Sonoma symposium “Great Gardens of the West” two years ago.(Visit the Garden Conservancy online for
the 2009 “Open Days” Altadena and
L.A. schedules.Membership not required.)
This was my first opportunity to see one of Heather’s projects in person and although the blog
description is very thoughtfully written, the pictures provided do
not come even close to showing all the great areas and the spectacular
setting.
Heather was awarded her first(she has two!)Design Magazine “Golden
Trowel” for a beautiful estate that she did, so it came as no
surprise to me that she is really
good at estate landscape architecture! Although she envisions more to be done in the
future, she and her team gave the
family beautiful plantings to harmonize and contrast with the pinkish estate home,guest compound,
and the charcoal black(really cool color contrast!)doors,gates and new
jacuzzi summerhouse. The non-gardening owners now have a garden-party setting in which to entertain and enjoy their fabulous
view!
The gardens are elegant simplicity,
yet have their “picture ready”
features. More impressive to me than the “photo-op” spaces, was the
care taken to revitalize the Arroyo
forest acreage and the front garden trees and hedges, as well as the orchards. All projects have their budgets, and it is good to see value placed on things that
make the gardens healthy and sustainable as well as the photogenic elements!
Heather said that her goal was to make everything look timeless,
and she made everything look so right that she really did have to
tell us all the details of what this project involved!
This estate is worth a visit-see Heather’s events for a tour opportunity in May!
Heather- thank you again for your
tour and please convey our thanks to the owners for letting us visit!
(You should repost this again in April-with more pictures!)
Janna Koch
Garden Conservancy Member
As a lover of well designed gardens and living on a small tropical island where the vegetation win out every time, it is a pleasure to see such structure and beauty in a garden of that size.
Being able to turn back the clock and return the residence to its former glory is a feat in its own right and a joy to behold.