ANOTHER COUNTRY

Around a contemporary house in Oxfordshire, designer Matt Keightley has used sculptural planting and stone to create a series of stunning courtyards that look more like California than the Cotswolds

- ZIA ALLAWAY

The key to successful garden design is conveying an element of surprise and intrigue, inspiring awe as you enter, then drawing you through the space to discover more. This is exactly the effect designer Matt Keightley has achieved with this visionary garden. Although set in the heart of the Cotswolds countryside, preconceptions of traditional stone cottages and flower-filled gardens are upended as you enter these sculptural walled enclosures featuring geometric pools, gnarled olives and dwarf pines. They bring to mind designs from the Mexican architect Luis Barragán that generally bask under sun-drenched skies.