ENGLISH ROSES

A ROSE

IS...

INGENUE ROSES. POSTCARD, COLOUR-TINTED PORTRAIT OF A ROSE WITH BUDS, C. 1920S.

The Garden Museum’s new exhibition explores the roles of roses in fashion from the Victorian era to today

The rose and fashion are inextricably entwined. Roses, like fashion, are a luxury and they are ephemeral; they are both ‘shown’ seasonally; their appeal is multisensorial, and they each incite passion and obsession. Throughout history artists, designers and writers have explored this fragrant flower and its deterrent thorns (technically they are prickles) – a conjunction of opposites - to draw out illusions to love, beauty, sexuality, sin, rites of passage, degradation, and death.

A creative collaboration between guest curator Amy de la Haye and famed set designer Simon Costin, this exhibition will also draw inspiration from the Garden Museum collection and gardens to explore the tensions between wild and cultivated, natural and artificial roses within fashion apparel, image making and contemporary craft practices.

Fashions designed by Alexander McQueen (fashion’s rosarian) and Comme des Garçons will be shown alongside ‘rosy’ undergarments dating from the 18th century and the latest gender-neutral designs by Ashish. Accessories will include including millinery by Stephen Jones and Philip Treacy; a rose bucket bag by Lulu Guinness and a selection of gorgeously decorated fans. Simon Costin’s dramatic ‘Rose and the Nightingale’ neckpiece - which

MISS LILLIAN YOUNG, ILLUSTRATION OF ‘ROSE GARDEN’ IN ARDEN HOLT FANCY DRESS DESCRIBED OR WHAT TO WEAR TO A FANCY BALL, 1896

POSTCARD, COLOUR-TINTED NARRATIVE PORTRAIT SCENE, BRITISH, EARLY 1910S.

ROSE FLOWERSHAPED FAN LEAF. DUVELLEROY, FRANCE, C. 1900-1910

ruptures the wearer’s skin when worn - and a jet mourning brooch will communicate the rose as a metaphor for the savage pain of love unfulfilled and forever lost.

The ways roses can interact with the dressed body will be explored by a group of studio portrait photographs dating from the mid-19th century. Illustrations by JJ Grandville and Walter Crane will highlight mid-to-late 19th century debates on wild and ‘engineered’ cultivated roses, and roses and gendered identities.

Painted and botanical portraits and gardeners’ impressions of roses, drawn from the Garden Museum’s archive and special loans, will be shown alongside contemporary images. The Museum is delighted to also feature Nick Knight’s sublime ‘roses from my garden’ and Tim Walker’s romantic surreal photographs.

Roses bloom from May until November, and since Ancient Egyptian times, ‘permanent botanicals’ have been crafted as surrogates for when the earth no longer yields natural blooms. The galleries of the Garden Museum and its gardens will be filled with a profusion of wild and cultivated, natural and artificial roses.

"A PROFUSION OF WILD AND CULTIVATED, NATURAL AND ARTIFICIAL ROSES"

Wild & Cultivated: Fashioning the Rose will also include rarely seen items from the Garden Museum Collection, including Ellen Willmott’s volume of botanical lithographic illustrations of roses Genus Rosa, and photographs of roses taken by horticulturist Gertrude Jekyll which illustrate how she used roses in garden design, intertwining them with honeysuckle in arbours and around trellises.

Until 19 June; gardenmuseum.org.uk

OLIVER MESSEL, SILVER ROSE FROM DER ROSENKAVALIER, 1959, COURTESY GLYNDEBOURNE ARCHIVE COLLECTION, GLYNDEBOURNE PRODUCTIONS LTD

BIRTHDAY ROSES. POSTCARD, COLOUR-TINTED PHOTOGRAPHIC PORTRAIT, FRENCH, 1920S.

FOLDING FAN ADVERTISING PARFUMS DE ROSINE FOR POIRET. FRANCE, CA. 1911-1914

MORRIS & CO SHOW GARDEN DESIGNED BY RUTH WILMOTT

Back in BLOOM

The world’s most famous flower show is set to make a wild comeback!

The Chelsea Flower Show is set to make its highly-anticipated return this spring season after a two-year absence. Produced by the Royal Horticultural Society, the world’s leading gardening charity, this year’s exhibition focuses on encouraging a connectedness with nature. This year’s designers have taken their inspiration from the British countryside and the main gardens will have a more naturalistic feel. They will be teeming with blossoming hedgerows, lush woodland and wildflower meadow and wildlife-friendly native plants rarely before seen at RHS Chelsea. This year’s gardens are designed to encourage gardeners to embrace the wild and bring nature back into their own homes. By championing biodiversity-rich spaces, they hope to highlight the ecological benefits of a wilded landscape. One of the themes of this year’s event is sustainability and the idea of planet-friendly gardening is set to continue through to the Discovery Zone. This year’s exhibit will include interactive displays that explore and highlight practices that support sustainable solutions, plant health and biodiversity. By focusing on sustainable solutions, the organisers hope to encourage visitors to consider what they can do to make their green spaces planet-friendly and help combat climate change. Another category set to return is the Small Garden Spaces. Much loved by city gardeners for its focus on making the most of limited space and resources. This exhibition sets out to prove that any space, no matter how small, can be turned into a gardening haven. Finally, an exciting new garden category is coming to the show. All About Plants is the first garden category to join the growers and nurseries in the Great Pavillion and champions the power of plants to positively impact people’s lives. The gardens will visualise the many ways plants can, influence mental health, community, and industry and each garden raises awareness for a UK charity organisation. All of these gardens will be open for the public to explore from the 24-25th of May for RHS members and from the 26-27th of May for non-members. For tickets and futher information, visit rhs.org.uk.

STICKS'N'SUSHI 2021 INNOVATION AWARD WINNER

Floral Festivities

The streets of Chelsea are springing to life

Celebrate the start of summer with a visit to Chelsea in Bloom, London’s largest free-to-attend festival of flowers. The world-class alternative floral art show will return to transform the streets of Chelsea from the 23rd until the 28th of May. Produced by Cadogan, in partnership with the Royal Horticultural Society, the event extends the Chelsea Flower Show throughout the streets of London’s royal borough. Shopfronts and restaurants will be transformed in a competition for the highly coveted ‘Best Floral Display’ award. Each display will reflect a unique interpretation of this year’s theme, British Icons, to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee taking place the following week. This year’s installations will draw inspiration from characters, symbols and emblems famous across the United Kingdom. Attendees will be able to see some of the most quintessentially British figures from the worlds of fashion, art, design, sport, literature, music, and food will come to life in vibrant flowers, from David Bowie to Bond, Mary Poppins, Vivienne Westwood, Big Ben and of course, Her Majesty herself. Visitors will also have the opportunity to enjoy complimentary rickshaw rides, guided walking tours and other exciting pop-ups. For further news and updates visit chelseainbloom.co.uk.

Life in the French Riviera is warm, effortless, and enduring—a spirit perfectly captured in the new Le Creuset stoneware gifting collection. Featuring ten sets in coastal-inspired hues, the Riviera Collection is unmistakably joyful and the perfect gift for travel and adventure lovers.

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DRINK & FOOD

THE PERFECT PAIRING

HOUSE OF PIPER-HEIDSIECK Since its founding in 1785, the House of Piper-Heidsieck has proven its innovative prowess in selecting and blending wines of exception. Now, chef Eric Geoffroy, from Piano des Chefs in France, has created a dish to complement the flavours and aromas of Piper-Heidsieck Essentiel Blanc de Blancs: Tartar of John Dory, leche de tigre and fresh herbs. Discover the full recipe on page 38. piper-heidsieck.com