Not Just Fleurons
Contents Page 11 Beauty as Means of Selection 17 Tony Eyton and his Garden 29 The Garden and its Grid 37 Mirror of a Perfect Collaborator 43 Theresa Bottomley 51 Not Just a Pretty Face 57 Jeff Soan 63 The Hanging Gardens of the Future 67 Jack Beagley
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Beauty as Means of Selection
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[1]
To determine the limits or boundaries of space is a sacral act and there is an intimate relationship between the beauty of the garden, the opulence of nature and the encloser that protects it.
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Beauty as Means of Selection
This book is a study on the relationship between gardens and the roles they play in our lives. It aims to provide useful and interesting information to convey why we should honour, celebrate, and praise the garden.
‘Apart from food and shelter, the next preoccupation of a human is the finding of a mate, but this instinct is so bound with the notion of beauty, as to become a powerful means of selection. Beauty becomes an important factor of recognition. Its erotic function is of absolute importance for the species, it is genetically inscribed. From it derives the urge to decorate and beautify the body, home, surroundings, and tools.’ *
The aesthetic subject is so fascinating because it collects the physical and psychological sources of our knowledge with religious overtones and it is similar to the mystical experience, with which it can be assimilated. In the City of God, St Augustin describes lyrically the beauty of the world as ‘a living demonstration of the magnificence and power of God,’ and asks what is the main point of creation: usefulness or beauty?
[1] The Encloser of a Garden
* Maria Luisa Cohen 11
[2]
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Beauty as Means of Selection
‘Evolution’s trick is to make them beautiful, to have them exert a kind of magnetism to give you the pleasure of simply looking at them.’ *
Floral decorations have been frequently used all over the world. The appeal of the flower is in its perpetual fragile beauty that speaks of the recurrent drama of death and rebirth in nature. With the rapid disappearance of the diversity of the world of plants, the inspiration for high art and poetry has been greatly reduced.
[2] The Ornamental appeal of Typography
*Denis Dutton 13
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Tony Eyton and his Garden
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Tony Eyton
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Tony Eyton
Footnotes
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Tony Eyton
There is a lovely ribbon of history in this garden that is held together by figs and vines.
The very first thing you notice is this extraordinary giant tree that has been allowed to die in the most unbelievably graceful way. It is just propped up here and there and the rest of the garden has been allowed to embrace it. It is an amazing gesture to leave a tree to just rot very slowly. A remarkable characteristic of this garden and what makes it so lovely is that Tony simply adjusts things. This is not an accidental garden. It may appear a bit messy but there is a great deal of contemplation involved and although he has a very decisive hand, it is a very gentle one, so he does not impose too much on the garden. When a tree grows up and creates shade he just adapts to that and adopts the shade and makes a feature out of it. Instead of fighting the shade Tony moves with the direction of the shade and follows where the garden is taking him.
Footnotes
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“I think the love of gardening is in the blood too because my father was a gardener. You give it a lot and then you negotiate your way through to making it better. I have selected things like roses very carefully, and it’s a mixture of both accepting and changing and being on the move ready to change.”
The garden benefits from Tony’s anarchistic attitude. Take a closer look at the Elderflower and you become aware that there is a huge, rather wonderful wisteria entwined. In the same way the fig tree thrusts through the rose towards the light.
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Tony Eyton
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Tony Eyton
“I wanted to make my own painting patch and it all happened accidentally really. The garden has got a lot of structure actually, which is strong in the Winter. In the Summer you could be misled by the abundance of it all and not see the bones of it. Nature takes over and it is a lovely balance between order and tinkering. The brilliance of nature and the spirit is glorious.�
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The Garden and its Grid
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[3]
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The Garden and its Grid
The tradition and style in Persian gardens has
In Mediterranean religions that share the same
influenced the design of gardens from Andalusia
cosmological story, a garden had been the prime
to India and beyond.
setting of human history, and Adam, the first man was a gardener. The Garden of Eden, which serves as the model for the good life, gave priority to the
The notion of limitation and closure lies at the
beautiful over the merely useful. In Genesis, God
heart of the concept of the garden. Originally, it was
says that trees should be ‘pleasant to the sight and
part of the earth surrounded by a fence. The idea of
good for food’.
fencing in vegetation is associated with the birth of agriculture, when man realised that taking care of
The basic design of the paradise garden is very
the earth guaranteed a harvest. Otherwise it would
simple. It is an idealized form of the pattern of
be entrusted to the good fortunes of the nomad
irrigation, in which water is shown symbolically
who searched for his nourishment during his travels.
and physically as the source of life. The core of the garden is the ‘chahar bagh’; a garden divided into
The history of ornamental gardening may well be
four parts representing water, fire, earth and air.
considered as aesthetic expressions of beauty through art and nature, a display of taste or style
A central fountain represented order. It is usually
in civilized life, an expression of an individual or
rectangular or hexagonal and made of marble or
culture’s philosophy, and sometimes as a display
stone and would feed water into channels or rills
of private status or national pride in private and
that divided the garden into its four parts. A chadar,
public landscapes.
or water chute, allowed water to cascade into basins or channels on lower terraces. Strictly geometric
There is no doubt that the origins of gardens
in form and with a mirror image either side of
have been religious, as most human activities had
the axis, the garden layout reflects the advance
originally some religious meaning and associations.
understanding of mathematics, which in turn is a
In the past, even the activity of cultivation was
reflection of the intellect and Divine Order.
sanctified by paying attention to the divinities that controlled the seasons.
[3] Traditional Persian Garden Grid
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[4]
The Garden and its Grid [5]
[6]
The Taj Mahal is a symbol of eternal love. It
The impact of the Persian garden is paramount
incorporates and expands on the design traditions
within western gardens as evident through the form
of Persian architecture. Islamic texts of the period
and layout of gardens in the middle ages and the
‘Mughal’ describe the gardens as an ideal of
period of the Renaissance.
abundance with four rivers flowing from the central spring or mountain, separating the garden into north, west, south and east.
[4] Taj Mahal, India
[5] Structure of the Taj’s Gardens
[6] Aerial view of the Taj, Source: googlemaps.com
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[7]
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The Garden and its Grid [8]
The Taj Mahal and the Versailles Gardens located in Paris both adopt the same grid structure as the Garden of Eden.
The paradise garden takes some of its character
The Persian paradise garden is one of the handful of
from its original arid or semi-arid homeland. The most fundamental original garden types from which all the basic feature is the enclosure of the cultivated area.
world’s gardens derive, in various combinations.
This excludes the wildness of nature, and includes the tended, watered greenery of the garden. The
In its simplest form, the Persian garden consists
most common and easiest layout for the perimeter
of a formal rectangle of water, with enough of a
walls is that of a rectangle, and this forms one of
flow to give it life and movement, and with a raised
the prime features of this kind of garden. Another
platform to view it from. A pavilion provides more
common theme is the elaborate use of water, often
permanent shelter than the original tent, and
in canals, ponds or rills, sometimes in fountains,
strictly aligned, formally arranged trees, especially
less often in waterfalls of various kinds.
the Chenar or Platanus, provide shade, and the perimeter is walled for privacy and security. Odour
The rectangular or rectilinear theme of the garden
and fruit are important elements in this pairedeza or
is often extended to the water features, which may
paradise, which signifies the symbol of eternal life, a
be used to quarter the garden. This layout is echoed
tree with a spring issuing at its roots.
in the four rivers of the Garden of Eden, and much of the use and symbolism of the paradise garden is derived from this connection. The contrast between a formal garden layout with the informality of free growing plants provides a recurring theme to many paradise gardens.
[7] Versailles Gardens, Paris
[8] Adam and Eve
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Mirror of a Perfect Collaborator
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‘Copying nature’ is one thing and understanding
Heligan, seat of the Tremayne family for more than
nature is another. Copying nature can be simply
400 years, is one of the most mysterious estates in
a form of manual dexterity. That does not help
England. A century ago its thousand acres were at
us to understand, for it shows us things just as
their zenith, but only a few years later bramble and ivy
we are accustomed to seeing them, but studying
were drawing a green veil over this ‘Sleeping Beauty’.
the structures of nature and observing the evolution of forms, everyone can get a better
The instinct to cultivate is strong and independent of
understanding of the world we live in.
simple material necessity. Gardening is an activity that, although associated with necessity, has given humanity centuries of pleasure. Botanic gardens, although mainly devoted to the acquisition and diffusion of knowledge, have a strong aesthetic element without which they would not attract the large and wider public. Biomimicry is the examination of nature, its models, systems, processes, and elements in order to emulate or take inspiration from nature in order to solve human problems such as architecture which can benefit from this kind of approach. The term biomimicry and biomimetics come from the Greek words bios, meaning life, and mimesis, At times what may seem as simple in nature can translate to better design solutions that are more efficient, sustainable and healthy. Nature is inspirational but it is also a part of our world. Studying this more deeply enables us to extract creative solutions that we can apply today.
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Mirror of a Perfect Collaborator
Most designers will benefit from studying certain
‘Life has had millions of years to finely
aspects of nature. As buildings now face a whole
tune mechanisms and structures (such as
myriad of problems that need solutions, it may be in
photosynthesis or spider’s silk) that work better
nature that architects can find some answers.
than current technologies, require less energy and produce no life-unfriendly waste. The emulation
Already, there exist certain biomimetic buildings,
of this technology is the goal of biomimicry; the
such as the Eastgate Centre which is a shopping
art of innovation inspired by nature.’ *
centre and office block; This building ‘was designed to be ventilated and cooled by entirely natural means. It was probably the first building in the world to use natural cooling to this level of sophistication.’ The design inspiration for this wonderful architecture was the ‘indigenous Zimbabwean masonry and the self cooling mounds of the African termites.’ Nature can teach us about systems, materials, processes, structures and aesthetics. By delving more deeply into the way nature solves problems that we experience today, we can extract timely solutions and therefore discover new directions for our built environments. As architects, we can benefit from biomimicry to improve buildings by pushing for more natural, integrated, efficient and healthy solutions. We also need to take a look at the role aesthetics plays in nature with the way function and form merge with synergy. Perhaps this is a way for buildings to harmonize with nature in renewed ways by making built environments more environmentally sound and healthy for occupants. *Brett Holverstott
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‘Those who look for the laws of nature as a support for their new works collaborate with the creator.’ *
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Mirror of a Perfect Collaborator
[9]
*Antoni Gaudi
[9] African Termite Mounds
[10]
[10] Eastgate Centre
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Theresa Bottomley and her Garden
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Theresa Bottomley
Looking at the garden in this picture you can appreciate how much time and effort has gone into transforming it. What was a bare front garden in a concrete estate is now a wonderfully populated space.
Although it is not visible in this image, the keeper of this garden is reflected greatly in it, within the way everything is structured. She believes strongly in homeopathic medicines, and the plants and presentation of her garden mirror this belief greatly. Many herbs and plants with human herbal uses are grown in this garden and are encouraged to grow in their own direction, not forced into a certain space. This approach to gardening is also guided by her beliefs in homeopathic values, for it encourages people to work with nature and try not to fight it. It is fascinating to look at this garden in its greater context, for it almost seems surreal how such a wildly inhabited space is actually situated in a typical block of Deptford high rise flats.
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The owner has created this space so that when she sits on her front step having her morning coffee she can be taken away from the reality of where she is. She is thus taken to somewhere she feels she has created for herself, which is her own, and that she can relate to it in her own way.
“However small a space is, you can always transform it into something creative which is a reflection of yourself.�
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Theresa PersonsBottomley full name
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Theresa Bottomley
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Not Just a Pretty Face
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In the study of gardens we are offered a panorama of human cultures encompassing virtually the entire history of the species.
We can understand their philosophies, their political, social, economic and artistic universe by looking at their gardens, and changes in the design, conception and cultivation of gardens reflect the changes of the dominant ideology. They are an admirable collaboration between art and nature, offering a complete experience that engages all our senses.
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Not Just a Pretty Face
Footnotes
Footnotes
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The power of plants and flowers can be used to inspire the imagination of artisans, artists, poets and many other creative people.
The garden is a symbol of a state of lost happiness. Perhaps it is possible to say that the garden grows out of a desire to reinstate rhythms of nature as they were in the beginning. Gardens are a celebration of nature in the vegetable kingdom and their beauty uplifts the spirit of our humanity. From immemorial times, the power that plants and flowers embody to inspire the imagination of artisans, artists, poets, and many other creative people, has been a sort of leit motif which criss crossed humanity’s diverse cultures.
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Not Just a Pretty Face
Many gardens are designed to be a place where the senses are stimulated. Originally, aromatic plants were planted in granite flower beds complete with braille lettering along the edges. Paving of different textures such as rough stone and smooth concrete set in a regular pattern were designed into the structure so that it can be said the garden stimulated four of the five senses. Great Maytham Hall Garden, Kent, England, provided the inspiration for ‘The Secret Garden.’ The garden is the book’s central feature. The secret garden at Misselthwaite Manor is the site of both the near destruction and the subsequent regeneration of a family. Using the garden motif, the writer, Burnett, explores the healing power inherent in living things.
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Jeff Soan and his Garden
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Jeff Soan
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Jeff Soan
Jeff describes how having his workshop in his
By having his workshop in the garden it is a constant
garden is a constant source of inspiration to him
source of inspiration to him for he is always
for he is always discovering new things, and
discovering new things, and learning how nature
learning how nature works.
works. Jeff tries to work with nature and not against it, evolving it into his work as best he can. Jeff showed some fascinating patterns and markings in
Jeff Soan has been developing his company
various pieces of his work.
‘Wobbly Woods’ for many years, and dedicated the time, and attention needed to create a skill that
‘Spalting’ is a process which occurs in dead or
involves carving wood into fascinating ornaments,
stressed tree conditions and can result in weight
which he then sells. To help him do this he has
loss and strength loss in the wood which then
built himself a workshop at the end of his messy,
creates the unique coloration and patterns in the
overgrown garden.
wood that he uses.
It is really inspiring the way he is constantly in his
Although this process can be seen as unhealthy
garden workshop and so it has become apparent
and negative in the greater scheme of things, Jeff
that the garden itself has started to take on the
tries to find positives in every situation because it
same mentality in the way it has developed and
enables him to grow artistically and to learn about
grown. It has adopted a quite scruffy and individual
the natural processes. Jeff states that the location of
presentation that mirrors his personality, even down
his workshop is vital to discovering these processes
to the curly hair he has.
which he otherwise would not be aware of.
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Jeff Soan
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The Hanging Gardens of the Future
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By 2020, two-thirds of the world will live in cities. Growing populations will put further pressure on land that has already been degraded by over farming and desertification.
There is a strong possibility that two and a half centuries after the start of the industrial revolution we will all become farmers again. Every one of us will own a ‘farm in a box’, which will sit on our balcony, roof or next to a window. Advances in aeroponics, growing in a mist of nutrients, rather like in a rainforest will give us emissions neutral food at the heart of our cities. These boxes would be supplemented by the neighbourhood vertical farms housed in the redundant high-rise office blocks we no longer commute to, and the multistory carparks we no longer needed. They will employ closed loop systems, generating their own energy and harvesting as well as using recycled rainwater. Front gardens, flat roofs and patches of wasteland will also become minimarket gardens, helping to green, cool and feed the city.
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The Hanging Gardens of the Future
The seeds of this are already being sown. Urbanites want to grow their own and some 100,000 people are now on waiting lists for allotments in the UK, while in France, urban vineyards are fast taking root. The technology is also developing apace. Here in the UK the police recently announced that they are raiding at least three indoor cannabis farms a day, while in the US, NASA is experimenting with aeroponics for space travel. Imagine a few food riots and rocketing food prices in the decade to come, and a new ‘dig for victory’ approach to feeding ourselves starts to seem very likely. Will this urban farming be a positive trend for sustainability? Many will find the idea of a high-tech world of computer-controlled indoor mini-farms daunting. Yet, such urban agriculture could bring climate benefits, put people back in touch with growing food, and provide part of the answer to feeding the growing world.
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Jack Beagely and his Garden
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Jack Beagley
Footnotes
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The lovely language of gardens unites all people. When standing in a garden together, people who may not be necessarily connected, experience an empathy and suddenly have everything in common.
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Jack Beagley
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Special Thanks To: Tony Eyton Theresa Bottemley Jeff Soan Jack Beagley Design and Photography: Sydney Soan Typefaces Implemented: Univers Palatino