Portfolio > McKessar pergola
These clients asked for a pergola to extend out from the lounge of the lower floor of the house. As self-confessed Francophiles, they wanted a garden which was based on French formalism, but would fit into the context of an Auckland suburb. The form of this pergola was inspired by the Paris Metro stations of Hector Guimard, yet in the context of a New Zealand garden. The columns have double bands of metal (with false rivets), and act as supports for Clematis viticella varieties, 'Södertälje' and 'Royal Velours' , and for heritage grape varieties (including 'Bishop Pompallier' ).
The arrangement of the crossbars is different from the normal layout, with the support rail laid from side to side, and the ornamental bars laid from back to front. This was done to achieve greater depth through perspective. The forged heads (forging is effectively beating hot steel to shape it) on the end of the ornamental bars dip down for detailing, and also to 'ground' the pergola, as the bars are angled at an incline from the house end to the front. Two bars (the two on the inside of the outermost bars) are longer than the others, to increase the sense of movement in the pergola. The house end of each ornamental bar is also forged slightly as detailing. The colour was adapted as close as was possible to the extremely dark aqua-green of the Paris Metro stations (this colour is unavailable in powder-coating).