What Makes a Patio Modern? (3 comments)

I stepped out onto my patio the other day and realized what a hot mess it was. Rusty chairs need to be cleaned up and powdercoated, leaves need to be pulled out from under thorny shrubs and bagged, the rail needs to be painted, the fence is missing some posts, pots host dead plants or have been knocked over and broken. Ugh. Who wants to think about that?

What I want to think about is a new, clean, modern patio. What makes a patio modern? It often will have clever geometry - usually deceptively simple at first glance, more layered upon the second glance. It will play off modern materials like cement against warm woods. It may include a lot of play between vertical and horizontal - the plane of the patio, the lines of the planters, perhaps the verticality provided by a fence or bamboo trees. More elaborate ones may play with grade. Views will be carefully considered, as will the use of elements like rills and fountains. Microclimates will be taken advantage of as well. It will keep it simple so that you notice the materials. A great modern patio will work well with the architecture of the building, and serve as a good transition zone between indoors and outdoors.
Some of my favorite modern patio masters include Garrett Eckbo, Tommy Church (Gardens are for People is a tome any landscape designer should have on the shelf and refer to often), Luis Barragan, Dan Kiley, and Martha Schwartz. Some of my favorite modern patios on Houzz are shown below. Enjoy!

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