For gardeners and art lovers alike, this is a unique portrait of the garden that stole the heart of Claude Monet and inspired more than 500 of the world's most treasured paintings. Vivian Russell presents a vivid account of how the garden was conceived and run by Monet.
Using a wealth of sources, many of them previously unexplored, she sheds new light on the artist as a fastidious and inspired garden maker. With insights from those who restored the garden to its former glory and who now care for it, she reveals the day-to-day operation of the garden.
Season-by-season, Vivian Russell's evocative photographs record the horticultural wizardry that makes Giverny the most visited garden in the world. From the preparations for the winter recess through the glories of spring, summer and autumn when the garden is under scrutiny from visitors, Vivian Russell follows the staff at work at the tasks that keep this living canvas colourful and beautiful.
Gardeners will relish the techniques used to create and sustain such a show each year, and will appreciate the planting plans that reveal how effects are achieved and how they may be imitated.
