Island Retreat

Multiple refrigerated containers were shipped by sea to re-vegetate this site and large trees were used to create a canopy over the long drive that had been deforested over years of construction. We developed new masonry details using local stone, and designed a custom finish on concrete terraces using rock salt that creates a coralesque effect.

Arriving guests are met by a simple archway – the true front door – set within a high, native-limestone wall whose reserve only magnifies the lavish welcome of the garden inside.

Sculptural trees adorning the interior courtyards are, in some cases, found art original to the site, which the designers selectively retained and pruned. The spatial sequence articulated by richly textured plantings, as well as rhythmic paving and fountains, establishes a strong tectonic order.

The masterstroke is an axial vista Hoerr Schaudt plotted through the very heart of the compound. At one end of this sightline, strategically added palms play up the reveal of the beach. At the opposite end, facing inland, a stone garden staircase ascends into dense vegetation.

Few can resist a climb into the jungle, where a path rises to a lattice-roofed lookout in a clearing high above the coast.