My painting life deeply informs the way I see and work with the landscape. 

My landscape designs, like my painting, aim to render a sustainable garden based on the understanding that all parts of any garden are interrelated and also dependent on a larger environment.

 Unlike painting, which is deeply solitary, I enjoy the collaborative nature of designing gardens to bring to fruition a client’s vision and help them form and refine that vision. Working in a small design studio (CRKW Studio), I have the opportunity to collaborate closely on projects with other talented designers which adds to the creative process and ultimate expression of our design of landscapes.

In California, facing many climate-based challenges, we aim to design landscapes and gardens in ways to address these issues. We work with drought tolerant and native plants as much as possible to reduce water usage. We also encourage our clients to incorporate edible plants into their landscape and create vegetable gardens if they are so inclined.  Creating focal points, places of repose, nooks and seating areas to discover and spend time in, and an overall rhythm and movement in one’s ever changing garden “scape” is our business and pleasure!