The garden of Eliel and Loja Saarinen at Cranbrook Academy of Art is characterized by a strong integration with the house and a clearly defined relationship to the campus space. Consistent with the Cranbrook philosophy that art should be incorporated with daily life, the garden contains many examples of arts practiced at the academy at that time, such as sculpture and pottery.

The restoration of the garden was undertaken as project manager with Balmori Associates during the time that the Saarinen house was being restored. Old plans, photographs, and films were studied. The plant palette of C. DeForrest Platt, who worked with Saarinen to design the garden, was determined from his many planting plans of the period. The garden is restored to the period of the late 1930s.