Botanical Paintings from the garden of HRH The Prince of Wales
An exhibition at the Gallery of the New York School of Interior Design January 23 – April 12, 2008
The Gallery of the New York School of Interior Design will exhibit 75 watercolors of plants, fruits and vegetables growing in the garden at Highgrove, the Gloucestershire residence of HRH The Prince of Wales. The works on view have been painted by some 55 international artists and depict a selection of botanical varieties from the 15 acres of Highgrove’s garden. The show, organized according to botanical classification, marks the first public display of the watercolors, which are owned by A. G. Carrick Limited and loaned with the kind permission of HRH The Prince of Wales.
Named after the Latin word for a collection of pictures of garden flowers, the Highgrove Florilegium unites two of the Prince’s passions – horticulture and painting – and is produced by some of today’s leading botanical artists. The works in the Florilegium revitalize the art of botanical drawing and painting, which can be traced back to the ancient Greeks but became especially popular during the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.
HRH The Prince of Wales purchased Highgrove in 1980 and has been working to transform its grounds to reflect his gardening interests, and adhere to strict organic principles. Managed without the use of any artificial materials, chemical fertilizers or generically modified organisms, the garden at Highgrove is considered one of the finest gardens of our time.
Alecto Publications Limited of London has been commissioned to produce a two volume facsimile in a limited edition of 175 copies, the first volume of which will be available in 2008. The Prince’s Charities Foundation will receive a royalty on the sale of the books to support its activities.
The New York School of Interior Design is most grateful to HRH The Prince of Wales for giving permission for the watercolors to travel to New York so that they can be enjoyed by the American public.
The School also wishes to thank Condé Nast’s House & Garden for its support of the exhibition and the related public programs that will focus on horticultural and sustainable topics.
Public programs scheduled in conjunction with the exhibition include:
• Wednesday, January 23, 2008 at 6pm David Howard, Head Gardener for HRH The Prince of Wales, on the Garden at Highgrove. • Wednesday, February 20, 2008 at 6pm Martin Lane Fox, architect and internationally acclaimed garden and landscape designer, on Garden Structure. • Wednesday, March 12, 2008 at 6pm Patrick Bowe on Gardens of the Roman World, one of the eight books he has authored or co-authored on garden history. • Wednesday, April 9, 2008, at 6pm Professor David Cadman, urban land economist, writer, senior fellow and former chairman of the Prince’s Foundation for the Built Environment, on Beauty as the Informing Principle of Sustainability. • In addition, the Friends of Horticulture at Wave Hill will hold three lectures at the School on January 30th with Patricia Jonas, curator of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden Florilegium Collection; February 27th with Alexander Redford on the Jardin de Metis in Quebec; and March 19th with garden designer Pepe Maynard.
The Gallery of New York School of Interior Design 170 East 70th Street (between Lexington and Third Avenues), NY Gallery Hours: Mon – Sat, 10 am – 5 pm, Closed Sundays & Holidays Access: Free admission, open to the public, and wheelchair accessible Public Info: 212.472.1500 www.nysid.edu
Founded in 1916, New York School of Interior Design is New York’s only private, not-for-profit college devoted entirely to interior design education.