Gardens are more than just tranquil places of refuge. They reveal much about the attitudes and priorities of the culture in which they were created. The Garden Futures exhibition at Germany’s Vitra Design Museum showcases a number of unique spaces that take a much broader approach to what gardens can be. Whether promoting biodiversity, making innovative use of precious green space to feed and nurture a community, or drawing inspiration from popular culture to create a private fantasy world, the exhibition reveals that gardens have the potential to nurture, educate, and entertain, all the while dazzling us with the sheer wonder of nature.
The Gardens of Marqueyssac: A classic example of the western formal garden in France
The Chateau de Marqueyssac in Vézac is home to picturesque gardens that are a classic example of the western formal garden. The style of this garden was initially inspired by the Paradise gardens of Persia and was perfected in France. In the 1860s, the then-owner of the chateau, Julien de Cerval, began planting thousands of boxwood trees, which he carved into elaborate, rounded shapes. The trees are complemented by over 6km of pathways, belvederes, rockeries, and waterfalls. Although stunning, for many, this type of garden was a symbol of aristocracy and therefore disliked. The gardens fell into disrepair in the second half of the century, but a new owner restored them and opened them to the public in 1997. They are now listed as a National Historical Monument.
Sítio Roberto Burle Marx: A modernized Brazilian garden design in Rio de Janeiro
Roberto Burle Marx was one of the great landscape artists of the 20th Century. He is responsible for modernizing Brazilian garden design and making a major contribution to the protection of the rainforest with his research into native flora. He was born and raised in Brazil but encountered plants from the Amazon rainforest at the Botanical Gardens in Dahlem during a year and a half he spent in Berlin in the late 1920s. He realized that the European-influenced gardens back home were virtually devoid of native species, and he made it his mission to correct this anomaly, becoming an ardent defender of biodiversity in the process. In 1949, he and his brother bought Sítio Santo Antônio da Bica, a farm on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, which would become a testing ground for his botanical and artistic research. His work was so important that Sítio Roberto Burle Marx is now preserved as a Unesco World Heritage site.
Prospect Cottage Garden: A unique garden in Dungeness, Kent, nurtured in harsh conditions
Prospect Cottage Garden at Dungeness in Kent is a unique garden nurtured in harsh, windy conditions by filmmaker Derek Jarman. In 1986, Jarman was touring Southern England filming footage for an experimental film that would be titled The Garden. Stopping off at Dungeness, together with his partner Keith Collins and the actress Tilda Swinton, he came across Prospect Cottage, a small fisherman’s hut that happened to be up for sale. Despite being in the shadow of a nuclear power station and subjected to a hostile climate all year-round, Jarman was besotted. He bought the property and moved in, but tragically, in December of the same year, he was diagnosed with HIV. Jarman’s desire to create a garden in the bleak landscape was a tribute to the tenacity of life. The garden is now owned by the artist’s friend Richard Howard-Griffin and open to the public.
Kawachi Fuji Gardens in Japan is famed
The Wisteria Tunnel at Kawachi Fuji Gardens in Japan is one of the most Instagrammed spots in the world. When the flowers bloom in April and May, the canopy of pastel-coloured wisteria cascading down over the walkway creates a magical, ethereal feel. But this is just one of the many attractions of this 10-hectare garden, which boasts over 150 other species of plants, including rare trees and shrubs from across Japan, and winding paths leading through a kaleidoscope of colours.
“The idea is that the visitor can come and experience different stages of nature at different times of the year,” says Naomi Tagawa, Kawachi Fuji Gardens’ executive director. “The cherry blossom in spring, the hydrangea in summer, the autumn leaves and so on.”
The garden was originally created in the 1950s by the local council as a means of developing tourism. For a time it fell into disrepair, but in 1998 the private company Kitakyushu Flower Tourism Group took over the site, renovated it and opened it to the public. Today it attracts around 300,000 visitors a year.
Jardin Mojarolle garden in China
Jardin Majorelle is one of the most iconic gardens in North Africa. The garden was created in the 1920s and 1930s by the French artist Jacques Majorelle, who spent 40 years developing the site. With its vivid blue buildings and distinctive Islamic motifs, it became one of the most popular tourist attractions in Marrakesh.
However, by the time of his death in 1962, the garden had fallen into a state of disrepair. The French fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent and his partner Pierre Bergé subsequently bought the property and restored it to its former glory. In addition to its beautiful foliage and exotic plants, the garden now houses the Berber Museum, dedicated to the indigenous people of North Africa.
“Jardin Majorelle is a unique space in Marrakesh, and in Morocco,” says landscape architect Kamal Lahbib. “It’s a garden that invites you to wander, to contemplate, to experience. It’s a poetic space in which all the elements – plants, water, architecture, art – interact to create an atmosphere that’s both soothing and energising.”
La Alhambra in Granada, Spain, was built by the Moors in the 13th and 14th Centuries and incorporates a series of gardens (Credit: Getty Images) La Alhambra, Granada, Spain
La Alhambra, the palace and fortress complex in Granada, is one of the most famous sites in Spain. Built by the Moors in the 13th and 14th centuries, it was later extended by the Christian kings who followed them. Today, it’s recognised as a Unesco World Heritage site.
But it’s not just the architecture that draws millions of visitors every year. La Alhambra is also renowned for its gardens, which incorporate a variety of styles and influences from across North Africa, the Middle East and Europe.
“The gardens of La Alhambra are not just ornamental, but also practical – they have a function,” says Almudena Grandes, professor of Spanish literature at the University of Granada. “They’re designed to reflect the different times of day.
