In this conversation, Mladen Jadrić reflects on the house as a hortus conclusus, a bounded yet permeable field where domestic life and nature continuously negotiate their limits. Across projects in Austin, Ramsau, and Pigerbach, a shared reference emerges: the Mediterranean and oriental house tradition, where the garden is not an addition but the conceptual center of dwelling. This approach reframes architecture as an act of framing nature rather than simply constructing shelter.
Referencing Le Corbusier’s reading of Turkish houses and the logic of the Topkapi Saray, Mladen Jadrić describes architecture as an accumulative act that begins with enclosing a garden and gradually builds around it. This sequence becomes an ethical position: by framing nature first, the architect assumes responsibility for a specific part of the environment from the moment of construction. The house is therefore not a nostalgic image of domesticity, but an active ecological and spatial commitment.
Across different contexts, the garden operates as the primary structure from which architectural form emerges. This inversion—starting with the green and ending with the built—positions enclosure as both protective and connective, balancing intimacy with openness without losing its ecological grounding.
Key Takeaways:
- Garden-first design reframes architecture as ecological responsibility
- Hortus conclusus balances enclosure, exposure, and domestic life
- Mediterranean house tradition informs contemporary spatial strategies
- Framing nature precedes and shapes architectural construction logic
- Ethical design begins by defining relationship with living landscape
