The Artist's Garden

Book Description:

Gardens have provided the location, the subjects the pastime and the passion for our greatest artists, from Matisse and Monet to Dali and Da Vinci. This book looks at 20 gardens and more than 30 associated artists and examines the art, the garden-making, and the gardens they immortalised which you can visit today.

The Artist's Garden will feature up to 20 gardens that have inspired and been home to some of the greatest painters of history. These gardens not only supplied the inspiration for creative works but also illuminate the professional motivation and private life of the artists themselves - from Cezanne's house in the south of France to Childe Hassam at Celia Thaxter's garden off the coast off Maine. Flowers and gardens have often been the first choice for artists looking for a subject. A garden close to the artist's studio is not only convenient for daily material and ideas, but also has the advantage of changing through the seasons and over time. Claude Monet's Giverny was the catalyst for hundreds of great paintings (by Monet and other artists), each one different from the one before. Sometimes a whole village becomes the focus for a colony of artists as at Gerberoy in Picardy and Skagen on the northernmost tip of Denmark.

This book is about the real homes and gardens that inspired these great artists - gardens that can still be visited today. The relationship between artist and garden is a complex one. A few artists, including Pierre Bonnard and his neighbour Monet were keen gardeners, as much in love with their plants as their work, while for others like Sorolla in Madrid, his courtyard home was both a sanctuary and a source of ideas.

About the Author

Jackie Bennett has travelled widely, visiting and writing about gardens. Her books include Shakespeare's Gardens, The Writer's Garden, Wild About the Garden and Island Gardens. She is a former editor of The Garden Design Journal and The English Garden.

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