Bagno Vignoni (Siena), Tuscany. 1989-1990

Overlooking the famous Etrusco-Roman thermal bath, the garden of Bagno Vignoni is an homage to the landscape of Val d’Orcia, which, beyond its romantic, almost luxuriant appearance, hides its essence of “garden in motion”.

In the early 1990s, the garden was but a barren plot of land, the result of a previous intervention which didn’t take into account the specificities of the place, from the Senese Clay (a difficult type of soil) to low rainfall. Instead of designing the classic Italian garden, a naturalistic approach was adopted, in which the Mediterranean scrub was left to take over, and low, drought-resistant shrubs such as rosemary slowly give way to the native trees—in particular, the downy oak, which is endemic to this area.