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Ugh.\u00a0 That was my first reaction to the title \u201cThe History of Landscape Design in 100 Gardens.\u201d\u00a0 I immediately pictured a dull, dusty history book.<\/p>\nUgh.\u00a0 That was my first reaction to the title \u201cThe History of Landscape Design in 100 Gardens.\u201d\u00a0 I immediately pictured a dull, dusty history book.<\/p>\n
When I opened the book, I was surprised.\u00a0 Choosing a random page, I was hooked by the narrative and soon fully engaged.\u00a0 Author Linda A. Chisholm skillfully weaves stories of gardens and gardeners seamlessly within the prevailing styles and the broader culture of their times.<\/p>\n
To do this, she uses \u201cone hundred of the world\u2019s great gardens, chosen to illustrate the history and principles of landscape design and to answer the question of why a particular style became dominant at a specific time and place in history.\u201d<\/p>\n
This history begins with a wide swath from the 9th<\/sup> century to the 15th<\/sup> century C. E.\u00a0 This was a time when gardens were enclosed, providing protection from the dangerous world outside.\u00a0 This style was used in both Christian and Muslin gardens, the latter in part represented by the Alhambra in Spain.<\/p>\n A later chapter, entitled \u201cThe Poppies Grow\u201d, explores how \u201cdesigners of five beloved gardens find solace in opposing the industry that led to war.\u201d\u00a0 These gardens include Hidcote, Sissinghurst, Great Dixter, and Dumbarton Oaks.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been to all, but I will now better appreciate their shared purposes.<\/p>\n Each of these entries are short, but \u2013 as a librarian friend of mine commented \u2013 meaty.\u00a0 Most of the gardens will be familiar.\u00a0 There is an emphasis on European and American history, although the two chapters that linked European and East Asian gardens were especially insightful.\u00a0 For example, I have never considered the similarities between French Impressionism and Japanese garden design of the same period.<\/p>\n This is a wonderful way to teach a challenging subject \u2013 the history of design.\u00a0 The author\u2019s astute organization of the chapter topics, along with the photographs of Michael D. Garber, make this book work.\u00a0 I wish there was a broader selection of west coast gardens (there are two, both in Sonoma County, California), but that is a small quibble.\u00a0 An excellent bibliography leads the reader to a wealth of other publications to pursue these topics further.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Published in Garden Notes: Northwest Horticultural Society<\/em>, Summer 2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Ugh.\u00a0 That was my first reaction to the title \u201cThe History of Landscape Design in 100 Gardens.\u201d\u00a0 I immediately pictured a dull, dusty history book. When I opened the book, I was surprised.\u00a0 Choosing a random page, I was hooked by the narrative and soon fully engaged.\u00a0 Author Linda A. Chisholm skillfully weaves stories of gardens and gardeners seamlessly within the prevailing styles and the broader culture of their times. To do this, she uses \u201cone hundred of the world\u2019s…<\/p>\n