Are gardens really an art form? Should they be given the same critical treatment as a painting or novel? ANNE WAREHAM argues that gardeners need to become more discerning if they are to be taken seriously. Although gardens are often casually referred to as 'art', I think this is more a result of sloppy thinking than a serious notion. British garden visitors certainly do not behave as though gardens are art. Imagine if they transferred their current garden-visiting preoccupations to visits to art galleries. Most visitors would be there to admire the paints.There would be stickers all over Turner's sunsets identifying each colour, so that viewers could rush off to the nearest art suppliers to get them. Discussions of paintings would consist of descriptions of paints and their applications, and only fellow painters would visit art galleries at all. If a painter were seen to use colour with any more sophistication than a child, this would be worthy of comment and discussion in itself. And all paintings featured would be 'lovely' with never a critical word for fear the painter would be upset.
展开▼
