The past
Our HistoryEarly History
Early HistoryTHE ‘DAISY’ YEARS 1865-1938
The "Daisy" YearsHarold Peto's Role
Harold PetoEarly 20th Century Easton Lodge
1900 - 1938After Daisy 1939-1950
1939-19501950 - 2010
1950 -19711971 - 2008
1971 - 20082010 & Beyond
2009 & Beyond
Behind the scenes
About The TrustOur Aims & Vision
Aims & VisionOur Team
Our TeamOur Details
Our DetailsFundraising
FundraisingGarden Ownership
Garden Ownership
A guide
Visit UsPractical Information
InformationPhoto Gallery
PhotosArt in the Garden
Garden ArtMap Tour
Map Tour
Our diary
Follow UsJoin us
Support UsBecome a friend
Become a friendBecome a Volunteer
Become a VolunteerMake a Donation
Make a Donation
Garden Art
Organic Classic - Alistair Smith
This sculpture represents Aphrodite (the goddess of the Act of Love) reclining on top of a Greek Corinthian column. It is carved from one piece of wood (a prematurely deceased beech tree), and using only a mallet and chisels.
The carving on the capital represents: two peacocks – found in the Gardens; a goose representing the ‘Patte d’Oie (goosefoot) design of the deer park; a crow – they roost and nest in the Bosquet; an apple (temptation), two pears, a rose and Aphrodite is shown with a dove resting on a scallop shell with a dolphin representing the sea. At eye level on the flutings is a carved heart showing the Prince of Wales’s feathers and a daisy.
At the time of the warm liaison between the Countess of Warwick and the Prince of Wales, the beech (fagus sylvatica) would have been only about 35 years old. When, in 2003, the tree died at the young age of approximately 150 years, Brian & Diana Creasey commissioned Alistair Smith to create this piece.
In Memoria - Antonia Hockton
This stone sculpture was created by artist Antonia Hockton in memory of all who were based at Easton Lodge during World War II. It was paid for from donations by members of the public and from donations from Great Easton Primary, Great Dunmow Primary and Dunmow St. Mary’s Primary Schools, following the schools’ involvement in the 2005 “Invitation to Draw - Drawing on Memories” Project. The sculpture is in the form of a wartime machine part, to symbolise the period.
Darling Daisy - Anne Schwegmann-Fielding
Inspired by the way The Countess of Warwick abandoned her luxurious lifestyle to embrace socialism and the support of good causes, this radical transformation was the starting point for the creation of Darling Daisy.
The artist strove to create an essence of Daisy, recreating her using objects previously buried within the gardens she loved so dearly.Broken, rusting and worn bits of history have been polished, shaped and gilded to create a jewelled bodice. From a distance, a Gaultier model, yet on closer inspection, a museum of bullet cases, crockery, coins, shells and other oddments from the Gardens’ past.
Symbols of her life cover her frame, and carefully concealed within the flower at the centre of her chest is the profile of Edward VII, her “secret” love.
Her transparent skin, made from fragments of old greenhouse glass, reveals decaying daisies picked from fresh from the gardens. She is dead but not forgotten. Anne Schwegmann-Fielding created the work during the Gardens first Artist in Residence project in 2004. Anne is well-known for her work within public settings. She specialises in using recycled materials to create sculptures and panels.
Commissioned by the Gardens of Easton Lodge Preservation Trust. Funded by Essex County Council, Arts Council England, Friends of the Gardens of Easton Lodge.
“Lost Labour: Community Service 1932” – Liz Ellis
This artwork was made in response to the photograph in the Dovecot museum showing ‘men and mud’, taken on a cold Essex day in 1902. These were the men employed to build the Countess’s gardens. The language used at the time to describe the men from the Salvation Army (’inebriates, broken professional men, others of the submerged tenth’) has changed, but the results of their work remains and surrounds us. ‘Lost Labour; Community Service 1902’was created for the 2004 Invitation to Create Sculpture Trail and was purchased by an anonymous donor for the Gardens. It is located in the Shelley Pavilion.
