Modern Alpine Landscape Design in Slovenia's Kranjska Gora

The town of Kranjska Gora, Slovenia, sits near the Austrian and Italian borders. Traditional wood and stone houses and barns with window grilles, pitched roofs, and wood log joints dot the landscape. Alpine peaks, plummeting valleys, and mountain waterways make it a popular getaway for summer holidays and winter sports.

In this picturesque setting, designers Tina Demšar Vreš and Gregor Vreš have crafted a memorable outdoor experience. Respecting the region's history and ecology while embracing modern design, their landscape strikes a balance—and feels very much at home.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Project at a Glance

• Location: Kranjska Gora, Slovenia
• Size: ½-acre lot (200 square meters)

"Our design philosophy is a modern reinterpretation—abstraction of heritage," says Demšar Vreš of the landscapes she and Vreš create with their firm, Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia. "For Slovenia especially, local characteristics of landscape and architecture vary and offer opportunities to design modern, fresh elements and spaces."

The home, built by Honka, rises from below street level like surrounding peaks, revealing classic alpine architecture. Using the house's material palette and details as a springboard, Demšar Vreš introduced the landscape's language with the entry fence and carport.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

The fence doesn't stray far from the vernacular but revises a traditional fence. "The architecture of this region was always a result of climate, conditions, and way of—initially rural—life, simple and built by local masters," says Demšar Vreš.

Locally sourced larch and stone will age gracefully, adding to the site's heritage. Though these materials take different forms throughout, their use creates a fluid experience. The site itself is the design's star. "We wanted to intertwine the house and garden into a coherent, modern, and subtle design."

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

The entry gate and carport are the landscape's two highest points. Granite stairs lead down into the landscape, softened with indigenous plantings.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Pebble inlays of local stone introduce more hardscape in another shape and scale. The carport, seen from the street, also meets the landscape through a descending staircase.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Paving is one of few areas where geometry is introduced to an otherwise line-free design. Granite stairs' irregular angles respond to the hillside's topography and form, creating an organic passage. The design never imposes too strongly, allowing natural environs to shine.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

"We left the majority of planting material in natural, free form," says Demšar Vreš. Even along the entry walk, softened corners and borders of greenery contribute to a landscape that feels like it always was and always will be. Alliums (Allium holandicum 'Purple Sensation') add a single touch of color to foliage-rich planting.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Moving past the house down a few more steps, an outdoor kitchen and dining area appear. Two distinct areas make up the landscape: more organized features near the home, further out the design bleeds into native landscape.

The kitchen design reinforces the updated vernacular with the same material palette. Larch wood reappears as cabinet doors. The gas-burning fireplace ties back to the stacked-stone entry wall. Concrete counters top the kitchen unit; a stone sink is dropped in on the left edge.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

A larch wood sauna sits just off the dining and kitchen area (a hot tub is barely visible in the background).

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Situated to take in heavenly views, the sauna brings the Alps closer. You can close the glass door without losing sight of the landscape.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

The back of the sauna conceals a private showering area.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Moving farther down the decked area, a spa patio and observation area appear. With the exception of a lone European ash (Fraxinus excelsior), the deck is stark; views remain the focal point.

The larch deck is designed so as the tree grows, it's easy to increase the hole's diameter. The deciduous tree shades the deck in summer, turns gold in fall, then drops leaves in winter.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Looking back on the house, the outdoor kitchen and dining area sit just above stairs to the left of the tree deck. The sauna's wall comes in from the left.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

The landscape's other half lies below the deck area. Existing flora was basically wiped out during home construction, placing a heavy burden on the designers—and creating opportunities. Everything seen here was planted by them. They reinforced the hillside with metal mesh and filled it with soil and native plants.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

"We wanted to renovate nature," says Demšar Vreš; they also wanted to return the landscape to how it had been. She looked to surroundings for inspiration. Observing how plant communities naturally grow—starting with a low herbal zone, then rising to shrubs and trees—she brought nature back.

She grouped grasses, perennials, and shrubs together, avoiding strong lines and inorganic shapes. Solid oak stairs leading from the deck down are the only visible sign of human intervention.

Landscape d.o.o. Slovenia

Other features, like hand-placed boulders, hint at a more stylized landscape, intentionally blurring the line between found and built. "So, even though the garden looks natural now, it is man made," says Demšar Vreš.

With the landscape in place, slopes and garden edges will be left to natural forces. "Nature will slowly take over and 'repair' what man has interrupted."

More: Relish the Romance of a Slovenian Garden