Gardens have existed for centuries in many shapes and forms.
A garden maintains equilibrium in large or small spaces through
its juxtaposition of materials, spatial relationships, hues
and textures. One can imagine the hanging gardens of Babylon,
the Garden of Eden, the landscaped and geometric gardens of
the Egyptian Pharaohs. The extended naturalism of English
gardens provides wonderful contrasts to clipped, polished
and manicured French gardens. Channels and running water are
characteristic of Arab gardens; those in Spain and Central
and South America are centrally located in cities and towns.
Flowerless, maze-like Italian gardens differ enormously from
the carefully raked and precisely placed stones of Japanese
gardens. Not to be neglected are numerous interior gardens,
as well as our own mental gardens, which we populate with
everything from weeds to exotic assemblages.
In my mixed media installations comprising The
Garden Series: Perennials Redux , Baby Perennials
Redux, and Flowers-in-the-Round, establishing
equilibrium among the
materials is just as important to me as in other gardens that
I have dreamed of, thought about and actually orchestrated
over the years. Along with the harmonious integration of clay,
glass and wood, the concept of growth and change is important.
This evolution occurs through transforming the existing spatial
relationships by using modules that may be "replanted"
any number of times in a variety of geometric arrangements.
Essentially, rather than turning to nature to form an enclosure
of plants, flowers, trees, rocks and water to please the privileged
few, my intention is to create personal enclosures of ceramics,
glass and mixed-media that may provide a place for everyone.