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Places to Unplug
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Outdoor TVs • A patio upgrade or vibe killer? Our readers decide whether plein air screens are peak entertainment or defeat the whole point of being outside.
How the Garden City Changed Urban Planning
Modern World
A Spot of Sun • Geometric additions to a country house outside Barcelona make space for a relaxed life in the shade.
A Microforest Grows in New Orleans • Using a Japanese method of planting tree seedlings densely, an intrepid group ranging from landscape architects to volunteers has transformed a slice of a city still recovering from Hurricane Katrina.
Domestic and Wild • A skinny house in São Paulo stages a showdown between matching indoor and outdoor kitchens.
Flight of Fancy • In Genoa, an architect and a mathematics professor connected two levels of a historic garden with a whimsical staircase—and then rented a flock of fowl to bring it to life.
DWELLINGS
Seeing Double • An architect makes a steel-and-glass courtyard home for his family in Santiago with two airy volumes topped by arched roofs.
It’s a Great Time to be the Giant Maker of Route 66 • In a sleepy corner of rural Virginia, a flamboyant sculptor is reviving America’s roadside folklore—one towering fiberglass figure at a time. As Route 66 revs up for its centennial, demand for Mark Cline’s Muffler Man statues is soaring, transforming a fading folk art into a pop-culture revival.
Don’t Call It a Beach House • The rambling brutalist retreat a group of friends built on the Oaxaca coast defies clichés of the Mexican vacation home.
Seeing the Forest for the Trees • Near Mérida, Mexico, a couple take a stand against destructive development by tailoring their home to a leafy site.
In Praise of Follies
sourcing • The products, furniture, architects, designers, and builders featured in this issue.
one last thing • A souvenir from a trip to Yellowstone is a symbol of personal discovery for neon glass artist Caroline LaCava.