Infinity And Beyond

Blurring the borders between sea, sky and earth, this garden delivers intimate, meditative spaces along with a sense of affinity with the limitless.

- Chris Pearson

Once they glimpse the giant cacti and succulents soaring skywards from the garage roof, visitors to this seaside garden in Sydney’s east know to expect the unexpected. And they are never disappointed. Matt Cantwell of Secret Gardens has delivered both the dramatic and the unconventional in spades. For him, this passion project was a dream come true. He knew the previous owners and had long yearned to work his magic on the garden, which was looking a little scrappy and unresolved. When the current owners, Matt’s clients from an earlier job, bought the property in 2014, he finally fulfilled his wish.

Perched on a steep incline soaking up views of the Tasman Sea, the property had obvious assets but also challenges. Plunging 12m from street level to the bottom boundary, the garden is often brutally buffeted by gales and salt-laden air, while the thin, sandy soil takes no prisoners. Matt’s brief for the spectacular site was something equally showstopping. “The clients wanted something architectural to complement the house design, something modern, with good structure and lots of drama in unusual combinations, and, yes, perhaps a bit confronting,” he says.