Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The Lutyens Bench.... an English standard.


The Lutyens bench above is more correctly called the Thakeham Bench. It was designed for the garden at Little Thakeham near Storrington, West Sussex. The bench has become an archytypal design in its own right. Sadly, many people today would not associate it with the prolific 19th century architect and furniture designer, Edwin Lutyens.

Above: Edwin Lutyens

It has had many spin offs, some of them rather fine:




Lutyens is often associated with Gertrude Jekyll, a horticulturist and gardener contemporary of Lutyens. They collaborated on many houses and gardens, including Jekyll's own house in Goldalming in Surrey, (designed in 1896).

Above: Gertrude Jekyll

A "Lutyens-Jekyll" garden overflowed with dense shrubery, colourful herbaceous borders and strong, classical architecture and furniture. This style was to define the "English garden" until modern times. Here are some examples:

Manor House, Upton Grey, Hampshire, UK



2 comments:

  1. I'm about to embark on a fairly large herbaceous border so it was lovely to see these photos - I'm busy collecting ideas at the moment. I too love the Lutyens bench - many happy hours are spent on ours contemplating the next project. Leigh

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  2. I've had a Lutyens bench on my Christmas list for years. I've yet to see it stashed in Santa's sack with my name on it! Your examples are divine. Thank you for sweet message David - it will be a K wire over my dead body!
    Millie ^_^

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