“The many great gardens of the world, of literature and poetry, of painting and music, of religion and architecture, all make the point as clear as possible: The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden. “
Thomas Moore, The Re-Enchantment of Everyday Life, 1996

Gardens have always been a part of the narrative within my work.
In this exhibition I want to delve into this magical subject and how it has shaped my vision . Gardens have been ,throughout my life, a place where creativity, play, enchantment, work and solace have all been, at different times, players in natures theatre. Once again in my life cancer has refocused my vision towards the questions of death and transformation. Gardens embody this dynamic, the heart of which is regeneration and the changing of the seasons. The garden, with all its beauty and disorder, has once again provided a place of retreat ,reflection and comfort .
Gardens have for me, been a powerful metaphor where growth speaks of that beyond the material world. Divination and ritual have always been deeply embedded in gardening practice to evoke the beings of the other world responsible for good harvest, divine beauty and spaces where these influences can come together with the everyday. In history the garden metaphor was there at the beginning with the paradise that was Eden and its story of temptation and banishment. It was there in the Garden of Gethsemene, a place of betrayal and tragedy.
It was there at The Hanging gardens of Babylon. A place of monumental and palatial beauty, one of the seven wonders of the world, a paradise recreated.
It is In the garden that we create a place that outlives us and continues to grow beyond our time. It is a partnership with nature where we work as equals and wonder at the changes that we have made together and, at times, to learn from the unexpected designs which nature has kept secret.
These images are gardens that are of the imaginal world that hold strands of memory and observation, familiarity and wonder.