April 2003 - Gardening The Ultimate Wedding of Art & Nature - by Barbara Hodges Brookgreen Gardens. Beyond the dynamic sculpture, Fighting Stallions by Anna Hyatt Huntington, at the entrance to Brookgreen Gardens, anticipation is heightened by the long, curving driveway to the center of activities. Keep your eyes open for wildlife as well as still life – animals and birds can be spotted along with sculptures subtly displayed en route. Plan to treat yourself to some quality time enjoying the manifold splendor that is Brookgreen Gardens.

This is not a place to be rushed through in order to get to the next, but a destination in itself. It is the first public sculpture garden in the United States and has the finest collection of American figurative sculptures in the world on permanent exhibition outdoors in a garden setting. Here, natural beauty, art and science join hands in this creation where man and nature have come together so harmoniously. The gardens are located on the west side of Highway 17, approximately 75 miles north of Charleston, between the communities of Pawleys Island and Murrell’s Inlet. They were founded in 1930 by Archer Milton Huntington, heir to his father’s railroad and shipyard fortune, and his wife, sculptress Anna Hyatt Huntington. It began in the usual snowbird fashion of wealthy Northerners escaping to a more agreeable climate for the winter months. But in 1929, instead of investing in a timeshare, the Huntingtons purchased four adjacent former rice plantations plus a little extra beach property for a total of 9,127 acres, stretching from Atlantic Ocean to freshwater swamps along the Waccamaw River. So much fallow land offered great promise to those who could use it well, and use it well they did. Starting at the welcome center, pick up a map. Join one of the many complimentary walking tours or go at your own leisure, but do not neglect to view the ten-minute introductory film, which sets the mood. The formal entry is guarded by a pair of stone lions that frame a reflecting pond centered with Anna Huntington’s sculpture, Diana of the Chase. Although brightly hued koi may crowd the edges seeking a handout, pass on through the wrought-iron gates ahead to the magnificent live oak allée. These two-and-one-half-century-old specimens are stunning in size and splendor. The effect of perspective makes the allée appear long, the gilt sculpture of Dionysus just visible as a faraway focal point. It is actually rather short, consisting of only four mammoth oaks on either side of the central walk. Along the way are flowers, flowering shrubs and trees, evergreens and at intervals, charming life-sized figures of children and animals. The entire space is enclosed by a pierced brick wall, just high enough for a sense of enclosure, but not too high for intimations of what lies beyond. As you traverse this and other garden rooms, smaller and more beckon from every side, inviting you to stroll to another and then another scene of extraordinary beauty in both sculpture and blooming shrubs, perennials, annuals, bulbs, banks of mature indica azaleas and dogwoods. View wide open fields, centered with sculptures such as the Don Quixote tilting at his windmills, accompanied by faithful, long-suffering Sancho Panza.Finally, you will arrive at a low perimeter wall looking out over the original abandoned rice fields where a sense of history can be acutely felt.By turning either left or right, you can enter other rooms, each different and, if possible, more enchanting than the last. Yet, this exploration can all be done at a comfortable pace, as benches, chairs and sitting walls are plentiful. Immediately to the left of the Dionysus sculpture is the old kitchen building, offering light refreshments, pastries, coffee sculpture court on the right where a narrow canal flows through the center of a pierced brick gallery lined with small captivating figures of children, animals and sea creatures. Water is used intensely in many unique ways at Brookgreen. Most of the main rooms feature a circular or rectangular pool centered by a sculpture or fountain or both. Carl Milles’ Fountain of the Muses is the most lively, where five figurative Muses fairly skip over the water in joyous abandon, accompanied by dolphins spouting water. Enjoy lunch at the Pavilion Restaurant or the outdoor Courtyard Cafe. The adjacent Lowcountry Center, opened in 2002, is worth a look as well, not only for its small but stunning exhibition of the life , tools and views of an 18th century working rice plantation, but for its remarkable aerial mosaic map of the Lowcountry area surrounding Brookgreen, which forms the entire floor of the small museum. A short step away, stroll a boardwalk overlooking former rice fields where large unwieldy trunk docks, which once controlled irrigation with the manual help of slaves, are visible. Birders find it irresistible. Additional pleasures include a pontoon boat trip up tidal creeks with an interpretive guide, as well as a Trekker’s vehicle ride which takes you into the real backcountry surrounding the gardens proper. Both trips take about an hour and are available for a minimal fee. Courteous and informed assistance is accessible everywhere you go. With such gracious guidance, see what you can, then start making plans to return! Think April. ™