Landscape Information
Named for fashion designer, philanthropist, and preservationist Philip Hulitar, this 2.17-acre urban garden doubled the size of the adjacent existing Four Arts Botanical Gardens previously established in 1936. Slated for commercial development, the land for the sculpture garden was purchased in 1968 with funds raised by The Society of Four Arts. The lots remained vacant until 1980 when Hulitar was asked to design a garden wall. Hulitar, who solicited donations of sculpture, remained an advocate for the garden until his death in 1992. Though sculpture was slowly introduced to the garden, no significant design efforts were enlisted.
In 2003 Morgan Wheelock, Inc. developed a plan to unite the sculpture garden with the formally designed Four Arts Botanical Gardens. Hulitar’s wall, which had fallen into disrepair, was replaced by a similar one. The naturalistic east side of the sculpture garden contrasts with the more formal western side, designed to respond to the geometry of the botanical garden. The heart of the Hulitar garden is a plaza paved in quartzite with a large octagonal fountain in the center. The open-air Pannill Pavilion anchors the plaza while an expanse of lawn and a rectangular fountain are situated on the south end. Wide stone steps and walkways provide access to garden rooms, which are defined by vine-covered pergolas, flowering shrubs, and palms. Bronze figurative sculpture is displayed throughout the garden in both formal and informal settings.
