“Don’t come if you want to see conifers and pretty flowery borders–you will be disappointed,” warns UK-based landscape designer Anthony Paul. He had something much more dramatic in mind when he designed his own garden in Surrey (less than an hour’s drive southwest from London). And we didn’t miss the flowery borders a bit:
Photographs courtesy of Anthony Paul Landscape Design except where noted.
Above: It’s “unlike any typical English cottage garden,” says Paul, who is given to understatement. His wife Hannah Peschar curates a sculpture garden on the grounds, exhibiting a hundred or so contemporary pieces every season in the Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden, open to the public.
Above: The sculpture “creates a magical atmosphere in all seasons,” says Paul.
Looking for more ideas about how to incorporate sculpture into the garden? See Grace Knowlton in the Garden.
Above: Large-leafed plants in strong colors create “an English rain forest,” says Paul.
Above: Sculptor Rob Ward’s work is reflective and meant to create a meditative mood. Photograph courtesy of Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden.
Above: Ward’s intent is to use sculpture to “create a frozen moment in time,” says Peschar. Photograph courtesy of Hannah Peschar Sculpture Garden.
Above: Large-leafed plants and water, together, create a semblance of the tropics.
Above: “My gardens are restrained and simple, requiring little maintenance,” says Paul. “I am not into cottage gardens, featuring lots of pretty flowers and color for the sake of it. I try to keep a simple palette and work with materials and plants which look natural in the environment.”
Above: “The way a garden sits in its landscape is my main concern,” says Paul. “I sometimes feel that I fill in the foreground like a stage, and the background is done by a far bigger hand than mine; the borrowed scenery gives presence and credibility to my designs.”
N.B.: This is an update of a post originally published Nov. 5, 2012.
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