"This book by Nils Buttner traces the history of gardens, as seen through the eyes of artists, over the course of 2,000 years. The focus of this book is not gardens themselves or different concepts of the garden, but rather the representation of gardens in art. In this study the author explains why pictures of gardens are a mirror of the social, historical, and aesthetic context in which gardens were conceived. He also examines how artists paint gardens by presenting some 185 beautifully reproduced pictures, including full views and details of both well-heralded and little-known masterpieces." "The wide-ranging coverage includes late-medieval devotional pictures featuring Madonnas in idyllic gardens, Botticelli's masterwork La Primavera, an allegory of love, set in a grove of orange trees, that was created for a bridal chamber; sixteenth-century views of well-known historic gardens, like those of the Vatican, which were in demand because of a new interest in geography and topography; realistic depictions of nature, without any attempt to beautify it, by Courbet and other so-called "naturalists'; painters' gardens, like Monet's Giverny; and representations of modern gardens, like David Hockney's Red Pots in the Garden, which are extremely varied in style and reflect the artist's subjectivity. In sum, the carefully chosen paintings in this book represent a progression of developments in art history and foster a deep appreciation for actual gardens as well as paintings of them."--BOOK JACKET.

Impelluso analyzes the constituent elements of gardens, both real and imagined, and uncovers their often-hidden symbolic meanings. Paintings and the nearly 400 works presented here provide a continuous visual record of the myriad forms of gardens.

Looking at Monet's art in the context of his lifestyle, this book is suitable for artists, designers, gardeners, and life-style gurus alike.

The Artist’s Garden will feature up to 20 gardens that have inspired and been home to some of the greatest painters of history. These gardens not only supplied the inspiration for creative works but also illuminate the professional motivation and private life of the artists themselves – from Cezanne’s house in the south of France to Childe Hassam at Celia Thaxter’s garden off the coast off Maine. Flowers and gardens have often been the first choice for artists looking for a subject. A garden close to the artist’s studio is not only convenient for daily material and ideas, but also has the advantage of changing through the seasons and over time. Claude Monet’s Giverny was the catalyst for hundreds of great paintings (by Monet and other artists), each one different from the one before. Sometimes a whole village becomes the focus for a colony of artists as at Gerberoy in Picardy and Skagen on the northernmost tip of Denmark. This book is about the real homes and gardens that inspired these great artists – gardens that can still be visited today. The relationship between artist and garden is a complex one. A few artists, including Pierre Bonnard and his neighbour Monet were keen gardeners, as much in love with their plants as their work, while for others like Sorolla in Madrid, his courtyard home was both a sanctuary and a source of ideas.

A beautifully produced gift book for gardeners and art lovers everywhere: a selection of Vincent van Gogh’s garden and flower paintings and drawings. Vincent van Gogh never owned a garden, but throughout his career he painted and drew outdoor spaces and natural objects frequently, both fascinated and stimulated by each location’s unique character. In this book Ralph Skea surveys the gardens that were most dear to Van Gogh—from the domestic havens of parsonage gardens in the Netherlands to the romance of Parisian city parks, from the blazing flower beds of Provence to the asylum gardens that provided the artist with seclusion and calm in his final months. Whether joyous paintings of plants in bloom or the intensely beautiful studies of lilacs, roses, irises, and pine trees that he produced in the asylum at Saint-Rémy, all the oils and sketches included here are monuments to the artist’s originality and poetic sensibility.

Paint brilliant floral watercolors with internationally acclaimed artist Susan Harrison-Tustain as she shares her unique approach to capturing the essence of natural settings. A must for those wishing to create art that resonates with beauty.

Gardens are where man and nature meet. They change by the hour, day-to-day, and with the seasons. They carry associations about the status, approach to life, and sometimes even the political affiliations of their creator. Gardens can be intended for public enjoyment or private delectation; they can be open to the masses or closed to all but a few. They may be places of scientific study; havens for the solitary thinker; spaces for frolicking and games, for flirtation and for love. Presented with the many faces of the garden, artists in Western Europe have looked at the garden in different ways, extracting and emphasising those facets of the garden unique to their culture and their time. At the same time individual elements drawn from the garden whether architectural or botanic have at certain periods come to the fore and taken their place in the decorative arts of Western Europe. This book explores the way in which the garden has inspired artists and craftsmen in Europe between 1500 and 1900. "