Pope's genius of place

Alexander Pope is credited with the phrase, "genius of place" in the context of garden design.  Much like wines have terroir and architecture has regional aesthetics, gardens can have this sense of regional belonging too.  I think that genius of place is what I would call a sense of place, regionally appropriate, scale appropriate, and in the natural service of its design principles.  Pope may say it better, below.

See this web page for additional commentary on the Earl of Burlington and Pope: https://misfitsarchitecture.com/2015/03/18/architectural-myths-16-genius-loci/


Moral Essays Epistle IV.
Of the Use of Riches
To Richard Boyle, Earl of Burlington

ARGUMENT The vanity of Expense in people of wealth and quality. The abuse of the word Taste. That the first principle and foundation in this, as in every thing else, is Good Sense. The chief proof of it is to follow Nature, even in works of mere luxury and elegance. Instanced in Architecture and Gardening, where all must be adapted to the genius and use of the place, and the beauties not forced into it, but resulting from it. How men are disappointed in their most expensive undertakings for want of this true foundation, without which nothing can please long, if at all; and the best examples and rules will but be perverted into something burdensome and ridiculous. 

In all, let Nature never be forgot.                      50
But treat the Goddess like a modest Fair,
Nor overdress, nor leave her wholly bare;
Let not each beauty everywhere be spied,
Where half the skill is decently to hide.
He gains all points who pleasingly confounds,   55
Surprises, varies, and conceals the bounds.
Consult the genius of the place in all;
That tells the waters or to rise or fall;
Or helps th’ ambitious hill the heav’ns to scale,
Or scoops in circling theatres the vale,               60
Calls in the country, catches opening glades,
Joins willing woods, and varies shades from shades,
Now breaks, or now directs, th’ intending lines;
Paints as you plant, and as you work designs.


-Alexander Pope 1688–1744


"In classical Roman religion, a genius locus (plural genii loci) was the protective spirit of a place" - Wikipedia
Genius plur. Genii - the superior or divine nature which is innate in everything, the spiritual part, spirit
lŏcus   - a place, spot; loci - single places; loca - connected places, a region.


I previously posted about a Garden Sanctuary design exercise / talk that I attended.  This blog post seems to be in a related vein of meta-design or something for which I have yet to identify the appropriate concise description, so I'm filing it under garden design.  Other possibilities: design philosophy, meta-design, motivation, design underpinnings.  The list goes on.  Since I'm more of a "here's an example of how to do it" person, I'm having trouble finding an description that works for me.

Sanctuary garden design

Originally introduced by Juli, I've met Terry Hershey before but in early November I had the opportunity to get to know him better as I participated in a workshop he gave in San Diego. You can visit Terry's web site (www.terryhershey.com) to find out more about him, but in case you are not so inclined, here's a snip from his biography. 

TERRY HERSHEY—author, humorist, inspirational speaker, dad, ordained minister, golf addict, and smitten by French wine. He divides his time between designing sanctuary gardens and sharing his practice of “pausing” and “sanctuary,” to help us do less and live more. Terry’s book, The Power of Pause, offers the permission to slow down and to be gentle with ourselves, in a world that demands More-Bigger-Faster. Most days, you can find Terry out in his garden–on Vashon Island in the Puget Sound—because he believes that there is something fundamentally spiritual about dirt under your fingernails.
 
The workshop focused on the idea of sanctuary -

Garden Adjectives

Juli and I argue about the garden - It's one thing that is sure to spark an argument.  We have a garden guru / counselor / designer who has agreed to coach us lightly through a design process and our first assignment was to come up with five adjectives that describe how we want to feel in a garden.

I came up with the following not_five adjectives.  Sitting with this a while in draft form on the blog has given me the chance to define and distill them as well as to link associated or somewhat duplicative ideas (for example, Wonder and Appreciation came to be linked in my list, though they started out as separate adjectives).

When I first formulated the list, I had a tendency to fall into the trap of defining how I wanted the garden to be.  I found that a way to help guide the process in the right direction was to start each item with the phrase, "I want to be/feel _____".  The parts of the list that I couldn't phrase in such a way belong in a different list.  There were two such items on this list prior to its most recent revision, but there were more earlier. 

1. I want to be Surprised and have my Curiosity Stimulated - I want to take a turn down a path and see something that is only visible from certain vantage points.  I want to have my curiosity stimulated to find out what's behind a gap in a hedge.  I want to have whimsical add-ins to the mulch, objects hidden among shrubs, funny or interesting or meaningful garden art.  I want to find unexpected pollinators buzzing about. I want to see something that makes me take a closer look and photograph the moment.  Blooms, bugs, birds, movement, hidden features, nooks.
2. I want to feel a Sense of Discovery - This is linked to Surprise and Curiosity.  An example might be to discover ethnobotanic uses for a plant or to learn by experience what grows best and what garden practices help.  I think this is telling me that I want to garden rather than just be in the garden.
3. I want to feel Wonder and Appreciation - I like to see unexpectedly heavy blooms, birds dive bombing among the plants, interdependence of one plant on another, flowers blooming in cracks
4. I want to feel Joyful
5. I want to feel Peaceful
6. I want to feel Sheltered - There should be spots that cradle and surround
7. I want to feel Restful - I want to be able to pull up a chair and rest while watching the garden move gently around me: in the breeze or with wildlife or to be still in the heat of the day.
8. I want to feel Energized - Energy of others may be contagious.  If the garden is full of wildlife (I'm definitely counting insects here) and motion and the stored energy of newly emerging growth at the right times of year then I would find that energizing.
9. I want people, pets, and wildlife to feel Nurtured - I guess this means that I'd like them to share the feelings that I've listed above. 

A related concept I found the on the web reads more like a bill of garden rights or a manifesto.  There's a high probability that it came from Mother Nature's Backyard.  I originally copied it as a group of well-formulated ideas, but I didn't keep track of where I found it nor if had I made modifications to it. 

We deserve shade, beauty, and places that call us to spend time outdoors.

Beautiful - Trees, shrubs, flowers, diversity, seasonal interest, natural.

Purposeful - Gardens that tell a story, you write the narrative.

Functional - Save water, provide habitat, recreate microenvironments and ecosystems.

Experiential - Invite people into the garden, paths, benches, garden art, feature plants.

Restorative - Healing places. Both the land and the visitors experience a new wellness. Ecologically sound.

Designed - Hodge-podge plant combinations are not pretty, regardless of why they were planted in the first place.

Things to avoid (I don't think we will have problems avoiding these)   

A bunch of random succulents and exotic grasses.

Extensive bare earth or gravel in the name of drought tolerance. 

Juli came up with these adjectives

Overwhelmed senses - sight, smell, sound.

A place to pause/sanctuary

Curious

Excitement - wonder

Inviting

Seems like there's common purpose, doesn't there?