Heavy Metal

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/09/2016 (3615 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Exposed ceiling beams. Brick walls. Concrete. Wood and metal. All of these components are part of the signature look of industrial-style interior design. The authentic appeal of industrial details, for example, is part of the attraction for urbanites living in converted warehouse lofts, like those found in Winnipeg’s Exchange District.

Authenticity, too, is present in the details of the industrial-chic contemporary landscape with its use of wood, metal, and stone. Characterized by clean, functional lines with a sense of fluidity, weathering steel — better known under the trademark name of Corten — is a material that is synonymous with the industrial-style concept. Developed by United States Steel Corporation in the 1930s for use in railway coal cars, Corten is a high strength steel that oxidizes to form its own protective coat. Its most readily recognized use today is in shipping containers. Weathered with an outstanding rusty texture that only improves with age, this durable material is gaining in popularity in the home landscape.

When Dion and Kristin Deschamps purchased a lot in Headingley and built their home, they were inspired by the open industrial loft spaces found in urban New York. Today the interior of their home features reclaimed brick walls, wood floors, warehouse-high ceilings, even exposed electrical conduits. To take their industrial-style concept outdoors they decided that weathering steel, with its rusty, earthy appearance, would match the home’s exterior aluminum siding with its look of teak and integrate the clean, straight lines that define their modern space.

Together with their landscape designer, Russ Penny — the owner of Netley Creek Landscaping — they collaborated on the design of a number of features that would utilize or incorporate weathering steel to suit their personal style. One of the most dramatic is a large weathering steel water feature. Located at the front of their property, brushed aluminum house numbers in a chosen font, custom made by State Industries, are spelled out in words on the two meter by 2.5 meter wall. Penny has displayed the numbers conspicuously by extending them out about 3 cm from the surface of the wall to create a shadow, made even more dramatic with night lighting.

Complete with a removable panel to allow access to the low voltage wiring inside, water flows out of steel spouts on the front of the piece into a generous pond edged with granite boulders. Linear, three-sided retaining walls built from sheets of Corten have been built into berms for a wall-like outcropping of granite and steel. There is more to the retaining walls than the eye can see, says Penny, who created solid foundations with concrete piles and bracing.

Where do plants fit into the industrial-style scene? In this modern landscape, a select number of varieties, designed for impact rather than distraction, include a mass planting of Limelight hydrangea shrubs with their large creamy blooms, linear rows of Karl Foerster ornamental grass, and low growing, spreading junipers, contrasted with specimen plantings of brilliantly coloured Tiger Eyes sumac. The coppery-orange shades and tints of Coppertina ninebark emphasize and enhance the copper patina of the weathering steel.

A steep descending walkway accented with Barkman Concrete’s Bridgewood Slab pavers features a random arrangement of industrial I-beams which Dion purchased online and Penny pounded into the ground. The I-beams make an artistic statement and tie in the steel elements in the front and back yard. Unlike the open concept of the front yard with its wide sweep of driveway surfaced in Bridgewood Slab and the adjacent greenspace, the backyard is heavily treed with stands of oak trees.

An angular pathway punctuated by granite boulders leads the visitor to a natural clearing nestled among the trees. On a square patio, beams of light reflect off the smooth, varnished surface of oak timbers which serve as benches. Sourced online by Dion, the timbers, complete with bark on the undersurface, have been anchored to Corten boxes doubling as end tables. Apart from lighting, a steel firepit is the only accessory in this functional and streamlined garden room.

Dion incorporated low voltage lights throughout the landscape, uplighting trees, shrubs, boulders and the water feature for a spectacular nighttime setting. The talented and creative Jasper Sevillano, owner of Aabacus Welding, was integral to the entire design process. Working onsite, he fashioned sheets of weathering steel into the desired shapes including the firepit, water feature, bench boxes, planters, and retaining walls. A master craftsman, Sevillano’s day job consists of working at construction sites. However, his creative side finds plenty of expression by special request.

The vertical steel columns are combined with panels of pre-finished cedar. This modern house with its juxtaposition of wood, steel, and concrete sits at an angle on a property whose shape is almost a pure rectangle. A narrow concrete sidewalk, wide enough for only one, cuts sharply as it turns the corner of the house, then flows past like a long, narrow stream. Looking upwards, past the straight horizontal line of the roof, there is a full, unobstructed view of the sky.

Again, only a minimal number of plant varieties, drifts of grasses and hydrangeas, have been planted in this ultra-modern landscape. Two large semi-circles on either side of the wide concrete driveway with its angular saw-cuts — created by Bob Somers, a landscape architect with Scatliff, Miller, Murray — are planted exclusively with 181 Karl Foerster ornamental grasses. At their mature height, with no bare spaces in between, the tall grasses sway and rustle together as a whole in even the slightest breeze. The effect is mesmerizing. In addition, the round, creamy blooms of fifty Annabelle hydrangeas serve as the perfect foil for the coppery tones of the rusted, weathering steel.

A series of square planters crafted from weathering steel by Sevillano are filled with seasonal annuals.

The most dramatic example in our city of the use of weathering steel is the 122 metre long wall at Upper Fort Garry Provincial Park. Located along the line of the original west wall of the Fort, the wall was designed by Cohlmeyer Architecture Limited. Steve Cohlmeyer, president, says that the biggest advantage of weathering steel is that it oxidizes to its own protective coat. Economical and with the strength of steel, he says this very robust material allows the freedom to build something that will last a very long time.

If there is a limitation, he says, it’s that Corten can deteriorate if it is in really close contact with other Corten or with soil for a long period. This is dealt with by coating the steel for underground installations and by assuring a small drying or breathing space when surfaces are in contact.

There’s a lot of talk about walls these days, mostly in the context of an obstructive force and what or who they can keep out. The weathering steel wall at Upper Fort Garry, brought to life by Pattern Interactive, has used cutting edge technology including LED lighting, motion sensors, and audio to detail stories about the site’s historic past. Jeremy Choy, owner of Pattern Interactive, says that the wall beckons visitors to immerse themselves in the experience.

HTFC Planning & Design, landscape architects for the Park, created the stunning planting design. Mark Bauche, designer, says that the effect of the surrounding greenery against the rust-colour backdrop of the weathering steel wall is another dynamic of interest. As for the weathering effect of the elements, including rain and snow, Bauche says that this will only create more impact on the surrounding landscape as the earthy tones of the steel grow richer. Urban art meets nature.

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Notices:

On September 17 Gardens Manitoba will host its annual Fall Sale from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Canadian Mennonite University, 500 Shaftesbury Blvd. Fall bulbs are available, including Canada 150 tulip bulbs as well as a selection of shrubs and perennials. For more details visit www.gardensmanitoba.com.

Bumper crop at Beausejour Daylily Gardens, 1st Street North, Beausejour. Fall surplus plant sale September 17 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Visit www.beausejourdaylilygardens.com.