In checking a few facts for the Sissinghurst post, I came upon the garden photography of Beth Dow. And caught my breath in delight.
"The shape and mystery of these places are a natural draw for me as they offer glimpses of the rich traditions of garden making. I am interested in garden history and historical concepts of paradise, and aim for pictures that have a meditative quality to reflect the spiritual urges that inspired the earliest gardens some six thousand years ago. My images are not depictive. I use the land before me as a jumping off point, implying light or shadow where perhaps there was none, as a way to create my own path through the garden. In fact, by positioning the lens, cropping my prints, and using burning and dodging to guide the viewer's eye through a picture, I feel that I too am a gardener in a sense. I am after that "slant of curious light" that is the genius of a place."
And she succeeds, beautifully so.
The photos are printed in platinum-palladium by her master-printmaker husband (lucky girl!). She informs me that due to the recent dramatic increases in precious metal prices, her own prices have had to increase as well, to $1800 per print.
I shall start saving immediately.
Above: the White Garden at Sissinghurst; Trees, Hidcote; and Terrace, Powis Castle, Wales.
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