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HUMPHRY REPTON

Since 2018, the bi-centenary of Humphry Repton’s death, there is a still  growing number of books on Repton’s life and works:

Humphry Repton: Landscape Design in an Age of Revolution by Tom Williamson (Reaktion Books, October 2020)

‘Humphry Repton (1752-1818) remains one of England’s most interesting and prolific garden and landscape designers. Renowned for his innovative design proposals and distinctive before-and-after images, captured in his famous “Red Books,” Repton’s astonishing career represents the link between the simple parklands of his predecessor Capability Brown and the more elaborate, structured, and formal landscapes of the Victorian age. This lavishly illustrated book, based on a wealth of new research, reinterprets Repton’s life, working methods, and designs, and examines why they proved so popular in a rapidly changing world’

Repton in London: The Landscapes of Humphry Repton (1752-1818) in the London Boroughs
Published by the London Parks & Gardens Trust (LPGT) this new book provides a fascinating insight into the unique range of gardens and landscapes Repton designed in and around the capital. His 50 plus commissions within the London Boroughs ranged from classic garden squares such as Russell Square and contemporary villas through to large landscapes such as that at Kenwood.
Written largely by LPGT volunteer researchers and members, many also members of BGHG, this beautifully illustrated book sheds light on Repton’s work that has not previously received such detailed scrutiny. For full details visit http://www.londongardenstrust.org/publications/repton.php

Humphry Repton in Norfolk published by the Norfolk Gardens Trust https://www.norfolkgt.org.uk/publications/

Humphry Repton in Hertfordshire by Susan Flood and Tom Williamson, published by Hertfordshire Gardens Trust http://hertsgardenstrust.org.uk/research/hgt-publications/

On The Spot: The Yorkshire Red Books of Humphry Repton, landscape gardener by Patrick Eyres and Karen Lynch. Published by New Arcadian Press http://www.newarcadianpress.co.uk/

 

LANCELOT ‘CAPABILITY’ BROWN

Place-Making: The Art of Capability Brown by John Phibbs (Historic England, |April, 2017). ” John Phibbs seeks to provide a detailed study of the motivation behind Brown s landscapes……Phibbs draws readers attention to Brown’s landscapes that comprise half a million acres across England and Wales, so seemingly natural that they are often mistaken for untouched nature. Phibbs renders these landscapes legible, exploring what physical places can tell us about the people who live among them. The book is generously illustrated with plans, archival materials, and photographs, including many newly commissioned.” 

 Capability Brown: Designing English Landscapes and Gardens by John Phibbs, (Rizzoli International Publications, November, 2016).

Published to coincide with the tercentenary of his birth, this book illuminates fifteen of Brown’s most celebrated landscapes. “To love the great English estates is to love the settings with which Brown surrounded them from idyllic parklands at Milton and Broadlands to structured landscapes around iconic houses at Blenheim, Burghley, Wake- field, and Chatsworth. With photography commissioned for the book, and including rarely seen archival drawings that shed light on Brown’s process, this book serves as a guide to Britain s most beloved landscapes and an exploration of the masterful mind behind their creation.”

Moving Heaven & Earth: Capability Brown's Gift of Landscape by Steffie Shields (May 2016)

Lancelot Brown and the Capability Men: Landscape Revolution in Eighteenth-Century England by David Brown and Tom Williamson (July 2106)

Capability Brown: And His Landscape Gardens by Sarah Rutherford (April 2016)

Capability Brown in Kent (Kent Gardens Trust, April 2016)

A Brush with Brown – The Landscapes of ‘Capability’ Brown by Tim Scott Bolton; a book of paintings of the 18th century landscapes created by Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown.

 

OTHER DESIGNERS

Mien Ruys: The Mother of Modernist Gardens by Julia Crawford (Lund Humphries Publishers Ltd.,November 2023)

From 1923 until 1980, Mien Ruys created over 3,000 gardens and landscapes. While most of these are in her native Netherlands, the influence of her designs and approaches spread far wider: many of us will have a little bit of Mien in our gardens. Mien was one of the leading proponents of modernist design: having trained and collaborated with architects such as Ben Merkelbach, Charles Karsten, Aldo van Eyck, Jan Piet Kloos, Hein Salomonson and Gerrit Rietveld, she introduced clean lines, geometric shapes and innovative materials into garden and landscape design. One of the few women members of CIAM, she was also one of the first to call for architects and landscape architects to collaborate fully from initial design onwards.

Uniquely, she combined this modernist design approach with an extensive knowledge of plants and planting, which she learnt from a very early age in her father’s Royal Moerheim Nursery in Dedemsvaart. Her father had close links with international gardeners, such as Gertrude Jekyll, who greatly influenced Mien as she developed her own loose, natural style of planting. Her book on perennials, published in 1950, was internationally influential and, in seeking deeper understanding about plants and planting, The book includes a foreword which sets Mien’s work within the wider context, as well as interviews with gardening experts and landscape architects who knew Mien or were deeply influenced by her work, which offer rich insight into Mien’s character and the timeless lessons which can still be learnt from her work.

Tom Stuart-Smith: Drawn from the Land by Tim Richardson, with a Foreword by Piet Oudolf and contributions from Tom Stuart-Smith (Thames & Hudson Ltd, May 2021)

‘Landscape architect and designer Tom Stuart-Smith began his practice in London in 1998. Known for contrasting built forms with naturalistic planting, he has designed gardens, parks and landscapes in Europe, India, Morocco, the United States and the Caribbean. With clients such as the Royal Horticultural Society, the Royal Academy of Arts, and Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, Stuart-Smith has established himself as the United Kingdom’s leading landscape architect.

Featuring twenty-four of Stuart-Smith’s gardens from around the world, this book is the first major overview of his career. Through four essays by the designer, readers will learn about his inspirations and methods, while also marvelling at the beauty of his designs. Each garden is accompanied by an overview drawing, spectacular commissioned photography, and text by leading garden writer Tim Richardson. Offering rare insights and ideas on planting, design and landscaping, this book is a must-have for garden lovers and gardening professionals.

Offering unique insights into landscape design and planting, this book will provide inspiration and ideas for garden-lovers and professionals, opening up imaginative possibilities for designing spaces from the smallest to the grandest.’

Reflections of Paradise: The Gardens of Fernando Caruncho by Gordon Taylor (Rizzoli International Publications, September, 2020)

This new book gives readers a glimpse into the creative thought processes of Spanish landscape designer Fernando Caruncho through a range inspirational images, ephemera, and sketches and a selection of twenty-six of his international garden projects ranging from private residences to large agricultural estates and public spaces, including a vineyard in Italy, a private garden in Biarritz, France, and an expansive estate in New Jersey. ‘His sources of inspiration are as diverse as Islamic design, Zen Buddhism, and European Classicism, and the control of light, geometrical scale, and use of local materials are key principles of his design approach’.

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