A Higher Calling
Perched five stories above the streets of
Boston’s Back Bay neighborhood, this roof
deck—actually three distinct spaces spread out over
nearly 2,000 square feet—had the potential to be an
urban treasure. For landscape architect Jon Pate the
main difficulty was working around the mechanicals.
Dryer vents, condensers, and the other not-soattractive
accoutrement of modern living dotted the
roof. “We needed something that would take your
eye off the utilities but allow air flow,” Pate explains.
He and sculptor Jacob Kulin collaborated to create
panels of high-grade aluminum with an intriguing
asymmetric honeycomb lattice pattern. Behind each
aluminum panel, an acrylic sheet with a cut pattern
offers both additional screening and the opportunity
for ambience-enhancing lighting effects. A plan by
lighting designer Sergio Mazon, with controls by
South Shore Audio Video, lets the homeowners create
effects to match any mood or occasion. Adding to
the challenge: everything from the panels and lighting
to the plants selected by garden designer Mark
Corbin to the extra-heavy furniture Pate chose had to
be hoisted by crane. A Herculean task, to be sure, but
a group effort that yielded spectacular results.
CREDITS
Landscape design: Pate Landscape Architecture
Garden design: Mark Corbin, South End Gardens
Builder: Jackson’s General Carpentry
Fencing sculptor: Jacob Kulin, Kulin Modern
Lighting design: Sergio Mazon, Mazon Lighting Design
Photography: Anthony Crisafulli
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