Arcadia I
The other day I went to Kew Gardens, courtesy of my sister Natasha. It was a cold, wet, rainy day and unusually there were few colourful flowers around – but we had a lovely walk, and came into the Palm House, a beautiful example of pavilion architecture from 1848.
Whilst really no expert on them, I have a soft spot for Arcadian interventions. Whilst I revere truly wild, unromanticised wildernesses, I love the way that the Victorians turned their creativity to framing nature, such that nature and culture work together to create poetry. In wilderness no civilisation; in Arcadia civility and nature collide.
The Palm House represents this beautifully: the plants, which in the 18th century were curios, have become the foundation of one of the most important conservation collections in the world
I’m seriously considering joining Kew soon.. Maybe we’ll meet there!
