The Ornamental Wilderness in the English Garden

In this comprehensive survey of the designed landscapes of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, James Bartos argues that ornamental wildernesses should be viewed as distinctive design features that, when linked across an extensive terrain, took on the character of the whole landscape. This study ranges in its literary compass from classical authors to contemporary writers on gardens and gardening to modern critical authorities and presents a visual focus on design manuals, individual gardens, and landscapes through engraved prints, maps, and photographs. Bartos considers the making, planting, and maintenance of wildernesses, their continental precedents, thematic resonances, and the eventual development of these often numinous spaces into mature gardens followed by their inevitable demise.

Format: Hardback
Length: 296 pages
Publication date: 31 March 2022
Publisher: Unicorn Publishing Group

In this extensive and comprehensive survey of the designed landscapes of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, James Bartos makes a compelling argument that ornamental wildernesses should be recognized as distinct design elements that, when interconnected across a vast expanse, took on the characteristics of the entire landscape. As a result of this remarkable analysis, our understanding of the renowned layouts at Wrest Park, Chiswick, and Stowe, as well as many other estates, must be revised. Contrary to the prevailing belief that wildernesses inevitably led to the more informal parkscapes associated with William Kent and Lancelot 'Capability' Brown, it was only when they were dismantled in the mid-eighteenth century to create more loosely controlled, open glades and greensward that the English Landscape Style emerged. This groundbreaking study spans a wide literary spectrum, from classical authors to contemporary writers on gardens and gardening, as well as modern critical authorities. Its visual focus is presented through a wealth of engraved prints, maps, and contemporary photographs. Bartos delves into the creation, planting, and maintenance of wildernesses, their continental precedents, thematic resonances (Classical, Biblical, Druidic, Patriotic), and the eventual transformation of these often ethereal spaces into mature gardens, followed by their inevitable decline. The book possesses all the hallmarks of a true wilderness: surprise, variety, and, above all, delight. It is engagingly written and a tour de force of meticulous scholarship.

Professor Timothy Mowl, FSA, is the author of The Ornamental Wilderness in the English Garden, which reinterprets the English formal garden of the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries through the perspective of ornamental wildernesses.

Weight: 1406g
Dimension: 199 x 252 x 31 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781914414350