A snapshot of gardening Britain
8 June 2011
Community gardening has been beautifully captured in a new outdoor photo exhibition that will be touring all four RHS gardens this summer.
Supported by the National Lottery, through Arts Council England, the tour is opening at RHS Garden Wisley, on 6 June.
Last year, photographers Julie Henry and Debbie Bragg visited post-industrial regions around the UK to photograph people and communities involved in gardening campaigns such as RHS Britain in Bloom and It’s Your Neighbourhood.
The artists say: ‘We were initially skeptical about photographing community gardening groups. We felt that communities didn’t really exist anymore. What we found blew us away; we found that community could exist in the most unlikely places, from a tower block to an alleyway, using gardening as a cohesive link to bind the community together and improve their environment.’
Using a range of quirky photographic techniques, ‘Blooming Britain’ is a surreal and captivating wonderland of miniature gardeners and magnificent blooms and represents an anthropological exploration of gardening in the community.
Where to see the exhibition
The exhibition will be touring RHS gardens on the following dates:
6–30 June - RHS Garden Wisley, Surrey
7–31 July - RHS Garden Hyde Hall, Essex
8–31 August - RHS Garden Rosemoor, Devon
7–30 September - RHS Garden Harlow Carr, North Yorkshire