As a recently retired high flying business executive, the client for this project spent much of his working life travelling to and from his company’s head offices in Tokyo, Japan. His appreciation and love for the Japanese culture gave him the desire to create a Zen type garden that was “…typically Japanese without being too traditional…” and that was our brief.

Various forms of granite and stone were used to create contrast and texture in the courtyard while other elements such as the use of the minimalistic steel edging and clever lighting solutions creates a real restful mood and feel. With the selection of black bamboo to create scale, and stunning maples (…for the Japanese inspiration), and finally with the inclusion of the Canberra grasses around the focal granite boulder was enough to give that distinctive ‘Zen’ feel without being …. classically Japanese!