An exhibition celebrating international garden design is to open at the V&A Dundee in a bid to inspire a “greener, fairer and more joyful future”.
Garden Futures: Designing With Nature will be on show at the design museum from Saturday until January 25.
The exhibition explores the impact of garden design, including kitchen gardens and the popularity of allotments, as well as looking at artists such as William Morris.
It includes a scent trail which features the fragrances of rose, jasmine and narcissus.
More than 400 objects are on display in the exhibition, which “digs up surprising stories of gardens through time, including creating sanctuaries and empowering communities and individuals to find peace and hope in times of adversity”, according to curators.
It explores international themes, including Persian garden paradises to the sustainable Oban Seaweed Gardens in Argyll and Bute, huge vertical gardens in Milan flourishing in giant concrete apartment blocks, and a garden in China inspired by video games.
The exhibition also includes Dior menswear inspired by the garden at Charleston in Sussex which was a retreat in the early 20th century for the writers and creatives known as the Bloomsbury Group, including Virginia Woolf, and was the home of painters Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant.
Work by garden designer Piet Oudolf and Arabella Lennox-Boyd, who designed the landscape at Maggie’s cancer centre in Dundee, is also on display.
Leonie Bell, director of V&A Dundee, said: “We are delighted to be opening Garden Futures: Designing With Nature as gardens and gardeners across Scotland are hitting their seasonal stride.
“Gardens are both everyday and extraordinary – they mean something different to everyone. These designed spaces reflect the times we live in and express our relationship with nature. Some are productive spaces for work, rest and play, while others represent profound spiritual, cultural and political ideas.
“This vibrant exhibition blooms with design stories of gardens from Scotland and around the world, unearthing different approaches to creating the ‘perfect’ garden.
“Garden Futures looks back to early earthly ideas of paradise and considers how gardening can cultivate a greener, fairer and more joyful future for humans and nature alike.
“Whether you’re a seasoned gardener or you’ve never grown anything in your life, the exhibition offers a thought-provoking experience, providing moments of sanctuary and creative inspiration within its stunning design.
“We look forward to welcoming visitors who we hope will come away with a renewed sense of what a garden can mean, or a new-found curiosity about gardening and growing.”
