Brief Garden is a
landscape garden
The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (, , , , ), is a style of "Landscape architecture, landscape" garden which emerged in England in the early 18th century, and spread across Europe, r ...
and former home in
Beruwala
Beruwala ( Sinhala:බේරුවල Tamil: பேருவளை) is a large town in Kalutara District, Western Province, Sri Lanka, governed by an Urban Council. The town covers a total area of approximately and is located on the south-west ...
,
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
designed by landscape architect and owner
Bevis Bawa
Major Bevis William Frederick Bawa, ADC, CLI (26 April 1909 – 18 September 1992) was a Ceylonese (Sri Lankan) planter, soldier and a landscaper. He was also one of the most renowned landscape architects in Sri Lanka and served as the Aide-de- ...
. It is home to the landscape design practice, Brief Garden Designs.
In 1929 Bawa was bequeathed the family rubber plantation by his mother, Bertha Marianne née Schrader (1876–1946). The estate's unique name was derived from the fact it was purchased by his father,
Benjamin
Benjamin ( ''Bīnyāmīn''; "Son of (the) right") blue letter bible: https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/h3225/kjv/wlc/0-1/ H3225 - yāmîn - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (kjv) was the younger of the two sons of Jacob and Rachel, and Jacob's twe ...
, with funds from a successful legal brief. Bawa realised that he lacked the self-discipline to operate and maintain a successful plantation and focused instead on developing the estate's garden. The original estate was approximately with Bawa selling off portions of the estate to reduce it to manageable proportions. He continually worked on the garden until his death in 1992. The estate was inherited by his employees, with Doohlan de Silva, currently managing the property.
Description
The entrance to the garden is located through to ornate gateposts, crowned with male and female figures. The gateposts were created by Bawa and
Donald Friend
Donald Stuart Leslie Friend (6 February 1915 – 16 August 1989) was an Australian artist and diarist who lived much of his life overseas. He has been the subject of controversy since the posthumous publication of diaries in which he wrote about ...
, an Australian artist and represent a fusion of Eastern and Western influences.
The path then leads to two additional entrances. The first, a black and white door set in a mustard yellow wall, leads to the house via a curved staircase. The second leads down into the garden but screens any views of the house.
Further reading
*
External links
Official site
See also
*
Lunuganga
References
{{Reflist
Tourist attractions in Kalutara District