While we are gearing up for our next journey we got to talking about the flowers we showed in that last brief post and it started us thinking about some of the gardens we've
seen (natural and planned.) And for us that led quickly to a
discussion of some of our favorite spots along the coast, the very best
of which would have to be Brookgreen Gardens (..to which Sherwood
introduced us..) right up Highway 17 from our hangout in Litchfield Beach, S. C. Now here's the deal ... in 1930 a New York
industrialist named Archer Hunter, along with his wife Anna (a superb
sculptor in her own right) decided to combine their profound love of
sculpture with their dedication to nature and purchased 300 acres near
the South Carolina coast as the site of a magnificent sculpture garden
and nature preserve. (We showed you some pictures from the zoo in the
nature preserve a while back.) In addition to the incredible
collection of animals, birds, fish and insects in the preserve, there
are more than 2,000 species of native plants, bushes
trees and shrubs
including some of the most enormous and beautiful Live Oaks you will
ever see. And, on top of all that - the grounds contain nearly 600
works by close to 250 artists. It is now considered the finest
collection in the world of sculpture from the last two centuries. But -
this is not a commercial folks. The fact is that the spirits of Anna
and her husband are permanent residents in this incredible place and I
know of no other place I have ever been that offers clearer evidence of
the love two people had for each other, their planet and their fellow
man than Brookgreen Gardens. It is profoundly beautiful, exquisitely peace invoking and purely spiritual in nature. If you can come here and not be moved, you have some wires that need adjusting!! I planned to do only one post for this visit but I realized that It would be way too long if I tried that. So - we will
probably do at least two and more if necessary. The bad part is - I'm not sure how many of the sculptures I will be able to identify by name. I apologize for that in advance but there are extensive resources available
that itemize the statues here so I might have to leave that part of the exploration up to you. I'm going to
start off with some of the "groundwork" items you find here beginning with the statues at the entrance to the gardens and a work that contains a poem by Anna that is deeply moving to me. I'll ask a personal favor - go back up and click on the photo on the top left and read Anna's poem.The last paragraph is how I see my home state too!!! Some of the other pictures here show some of the tile work in the walkways and the shaded corridors leading from one gallery
section to another. The neat thing about Brookgreen is that the sculptures appear almost out of nowhere to surprise you. The one a little above and to the right - almost hidden in the ivy covering the wall - is a fantastic scene of ocean waves breaking onto the shore. One of my very favorite images of all!! And -
even the ornamentation for some of the windows is a work of art. Amazing. The astonishing variety of
flowers and shrubs is breathtaking but the really neat thing when you visit in the spring or summer is the myriad of butterflies that own the flowers. You enter Brookgreen to the north side of Highway 17 on Pawley's Island, S. C. and are immediately transported to another dimension. The drive leading to the reception center - and to the other
key points such as the Zooligical Compound and the Rice Plantation Boat Tour - is
gorgeous to the max. There are places you can stop and take a stroll through the immense Live Oaks but you might want to wait until the end of your visit for that - there's too much to see to slow down now!! Right outside the welcome center you get the idea about what kind of sculptural environment you have entered when you encounter a remarkable set of bronzes showing a group of children raising the flag at the beginning of a new day and the group saying the Pledge of Allegiance. The children surrounding the flag are so
incredibly life-like you listen a bit more carefully to see if you can, indeed, hear the words of the pledge as they are being spoken. Whoa!!! Nearby you spot an old gentleman enjoying the morning paper as he relaxes on a park bench. I'm not putting it here - but - I've got a great picture of Linda sitting next to the old fellow trying to engage him in
 |
| Len Ganaway by Derek Wernher |
conversation. (Hmmmmmm.... knowing her she probably succeeded and I just didn't see it!!) It is a remarkable piece and you can even make out the stories in the edition he is reading. These works are relatively new but
not very far away you quickly encounter some older masterpieces. In fact one of the first ones you see is a "double" treat. It is "The Faun" by Leo Lentelli - but it is situated in the center of another beautiful work - "The Tortoise Fountain" by Janet Scudder. (Look carefully at where the cherub is standing.) Believe me folks, we have not even begun to enter the incredible world of sculpture that awaits us in Brookgreen but I think it might be best to take a bit of a break for now. I sort of 'sprung' this set of posts on you so we'll give you a chance to catch your breath and get a cool drink of water before we begin to wander through the countless paths of this magical sculpture wonder world. Come on back as we continue. See ya.
While we are gearing up for our next journey we got to talking about the flowers we showed in that last brief post and it started us thinking about some of the gardens we've
seen (natural and planned.) And for us that led quickly to a
discussion of some of our favorite spots along the coast, the very best
of which would have to be Brookgreen Gardens (..to which Sherwood
introduced us..) right up Highway 17 from our hangout in Litchfield Beach, S. C. Now here's the deal ... in 1930 a New York
industrialist named Archer Hunter, along with his wife Anna (a superb
sculptor in her own right) decided to combine their profound love of
sculpture with their dedication to nature and purchased 300 acres near
the South Carolina coast as the site of a magnificent sculpture garden
and nature preserve. (We showed you some pictures from the zoo in the
nature preserve a while back.) In addition to the incredible
collection of animals, birds, fish and insects in the preserve, there
are more than 2,000 species of native plants, bushes trees and shrubs
including some of the most enormous and beautiful Live Oaks you will
ever see. And, on top of all that - the grounds contain nearly 600
works by close to 250 artists. It is now considered the finest
collection in the world of sculpture from the last two centuries. But -
this is not a commercial folks. The fact is that the spirits of Anna
and her husband are permanent residents in this incredible place and I
know of no other place I have ever been that offers clearer evidence of
the love two people had for each other, their planet and their fellow
man than Brookgreen Gardens. It is profoundly beautiful, exquisitely peace invoking and purely spiritual in nature. If you can come here and not be moved, you have some wires that need adjusting!! I planned to do only one post for this visit but I realized that It would be way too long if I tried that. So - we will 
probably do at least two and more if necessary. The bad part is - I'm not sure how many of the sculptures I will be able to identify by name. I apologize for that in advance but there are extensive resources available 
that itemize the statues here so I might have to leave that part of the exploration up to you. I'm going to 
start off with some of the "groundwork" items you find here beginning with the statues at the entrance to the gardens and a work that contains a poem by Anna that is deeply moving to me. I'll ask a personal favor - go back up and click on the photo on the top left and read Anna's poem.The last paragraph is how I see my home state too!!! Some of the other pictures here show some of the tile work in the walkways and the shaded corridors leading from one gallery 
section to another. The neat thing about Brookgreen is that the sculptures appear almost out of nowhere to surprise you. The one a little above and to the right - almost hidden in the ivy covering the wall - is a fantastic scene of ocean waves breaking onto the shore. One of my very favorite images of all!! And -
even the ornamentation for some of the windows is a work of art. Amazing. The astonishing variety of 
flowers and shrubs is breathtaking but the really neat thing when you visit in the spring or summer is the myriad of butterflies that own the flowers. You enter Brookgreen to the north side of Highway 17 on Pawley's Island, S. C. and are immediately transported to another dimension. The drive leading to the reception center - and to the other 
key points such as the Zooligical Compound and the Rice Plantation Boat Tour - is 
gorgeous to the max. There are places you can stop and take a stroll through the immense Live Oaks but you might want to wait until the end of your visit for that - there's too much to see to slow down now!! Right outside the welcome center you get the idea about what kind of sculptural environment you have entered when you encounter a remarkable set of bronzes showing a group of children raising the flag at the beginning of a new day and the group saying the Pledge of Allegiance. The children surrounding the flag are so 
incredibly life-like you listen a bit more carefully to see if you can, indeed, hear the words of the pledge as they are being spoken. Whoa!!! Nearby you spot an old gentleman enjoying the morning paper as he relaxes on a park bench. I'm not putting it here - but - I've got a great picture of Linda sitting next to the old fellow trying to engage him in
not very far away you quickly encounter some older masterpieces. In fact one of the first ones you see is a "double" treat. It is "The Faun" by Leo Lentelli - but it is situated in the center of another beautiful work - "The Tortoise Fountain" by Janet Scudder. (Look carefully at where the cherub is standing.) Believe me folks, we have not even begun to enter the incredible world of sculpture that awaits us in Brookgreen but I think it might be best to take a bit of a break for now. I sort of 'sprung' this set of posts on you so we'll give you a chance to catch your breath and get a cool drink of water before we begin to wander through the countless paths of this magical sculpture wonder world. Come on back as we continue. See ya.
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