What if what is typically seen as nuisance or negligence can be re-seen as resilience and symbiosis? Perhaps you’ve seen a maple tree sprouting in the gutter of a house as a child and secretly rooted for it to succeed in growing into a tree against all odds. Or the joy of observing a flower sprouting in-between the cracks of the sidewalk.

Gutter Gable Garden celebrates the perseverance of plants growing and water flowing where it wants to grow contrary to where we as humans would want and currently see as a problem, and seeks to channel that natural behavior into enchanting and unexpected ways. It seeks to bring about delight and awareness for how architecture and people are not outside of nature, but are part of and can be in harmony with nature.

Rather than allow gutter water to simply go down the sewer drain, rainwater can seep in-between the pavers allowing natural aquifers to be replenished while fostering flower growth where one would typically expect only concrete.

The primary structure is the profile of typical residential house with roof peaks and plateaus, outlining the perimeter with a gutter system that doubles as a planter.

In the middle of the structure is a permeable paving pattern that calls attention to the need for further re-imagining the issue of drainage as an opportunity for harmonization. Its enfilade openings encourage entry and observation within and frame views beyond.