cheekwood

Color Returns to Cheekwood: Patrick Dougherty’s Sitckwork

March 25, 2014 by Leah Leave a Comment

We were supposed to have rain this weekend, but thanks to the inaccuracy of the meteorologists in our area, it was sunny. I headed to Cheekwood on Sunday for my first visit of the season. Upon pulling up to the gate, I heard a shriek that sounded like a cross between a bird of prey, a mountain lion, and a human scream. Apparently, they have a recording set up to deter deer from entering the gardens.

I like to go early each year, before the maddening spring crowds descend. It’s absolutely tranquil. Some of the flowers have begun to bloom, mostly violas, daffodils, and hellebores. The feeling in the air is one of happy expectation with bright purples and yellows dotting the scene.

The tulips are waiting for warmer days before being coaxed into color. They were surrounded by an electric fence which I assume is another deer deterrent. This year the garden boasts 100,000 tulips of different varieties. I cannot wait to come and see what the place looks like when they’re blooming. They are everywhere!

Upon rounding the bend that overlooks the ponds, one can see the newest outdoor exhibit that has been advertised lately, Little Bitty Pretty One by Patrick Dougherty. One can’t help but feel like they’ve just stepped onto a page in a storybook when they see this incredible structure composed solely of intertwined sticks. There is a bit of whimsy created by the natural bends and curves of the branches used to construct Dougherty’s sculptures. I was fascinated. When you step inside, you can still feel breeze and light in a way that gives a whole new meaning to the phrase “tree house.” Looking up, the sky is visible, and upon examination of the sticks, it’s incredible the level of detail woven into the structure. I’m so glad I was able to enjoy it by myself for a moment, completely lost in my imagination of hobbits and Harry Potter and Narnian creatures, all of whom would have been quite at home in such a place. I wish these structures were all over the garden. I was disappointed that there was only one, but I’d love to see more of these in other places! http://www.stickwork.net/featured/

Last year was a special year for Cheekwood with Bruce Munro’s Light exhibit. Most of my visits to the garden happened at night. The last time I saw this pool, there were orb’s of fiber optic light called Fagin’s Urchins floating on the surface.

The fountains bubbled happily again, echoing the sentiment that spring is finally here and we can look forward to color and life and moments out in the fresh air.

The tulips should start to put on a lovely show in the next couple of weeks. There is the nasty rumor we might get snow one night this week, but let’s hope that’s all it is. I mean, do these flowers look like they want more snow?

LIGHT: Bruce Munro At Cheekwood Botanical Gardens

May 30, 2013 by Leah Leave a Comment

Tonight was officially the second night the Bruce Munro light exhibit was open at Cheekwood and we were dazzled. I brought Rob down there with me, we sprayed a healthy dose of bug spray on ourselves, and walked into a wonderland of light. This is only the second time this installation is being shown in the U.S. The first time was at Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, another place near and dear to my plant-loving heart.

Vogue named the Light exhibit at Cheekwood #2 on its list From Memorial Day to Labor Day, 31 Ways to Make the Most of Summer. An impressive feat for our little city! This is the largest installation the garden has had since Chihuly came a few years ago and blew us all away with the sheer awesomeness of his nature and glass exhibit. You can find more information about British artist, Bruce Munro, here.

Please know, I wanted to give you an idea of what this looks like so you will go visit, but these pictures can’t possibly do justice to the magic of being there in person. And I just renewed my membership so I can take two guests every time I go. Hit me up, people!

As you walk into the gardens, you happen upon the water towers, made of 10,000 bottles of water all laced with fiber optic lights. They looked amazing when the dark closed in. Ethereal music was floating through the speakers in each tower and added such a cool vibe, I was sad to leave. If they had been able to pipe that music through the entire garden, it would have made the whole experience completely epic.

Then we headed to the Japanese garden where the bamboo forest was lit with dozens of fiber optic filament lights from the below. The effect made it seem like fairies could be flitting in amongst the tall bamboo. I could have stayed in this one spot all night.

The Zen garden had one feature, a blue moon that shifted between shades of white, green, and deepest indigo. The effect was very peaceful and could bring a person to a trance-like state if they stared for too long. The pavilion was flanked with lit candles on both sides, which added a softer, more natural light that clashed pleasantly with the fiber optics happening everywhere else.

As we headed across the field to the pond, the tipi lights were flashing so fast it was hard to concentrate on them for long. The effect with the reflection on the water was really stunning though. They were definitely the party lights of the garden, except no EDM music was playing over there. Sad. The information plate said they were meant to invoke memories of our history.

The shallow pool is always a favorite spot of mine to sit when I’m at Cheekwood. The water is so quiet, so tranquil, and the simplicity of the orbs was a perfect accompaniment to the space. The still water gave a mirror effect that made it look like you could step right out and skate around those orbs.

We headed up to the house where there were some ceiling chandeliers to die for. The one in the solarium felt like a shower of falling stars and the one beside the winding staircase looked like small bells hanging from silken threads.

Back outside the house was the most incredible display of thousands of tiny suspended lights all over the property. Every inch of green space was covered in these lights. They looked like internally lit lollipops or glowing tulips with colors that shifted and changed. It looked like the wind was blowing through them, causing the colors to glow and fade like embers. These were probably the most impressive and beautiful part of the exhibit, but also the trickiest to actually get a picture of. This is where the “you had to be there” part comes in.

Overall, Cheekwood is decked out in a finery of lights. It took us a little over an hour to go through the place, and would have taken longer if we’d stopped to look at the art in the house (which I’d already seen) and perhaps grabbed a glass of wine at the bar before heading out. I will definitely be visiting this place many times (and bringing friends) as this exhibit continues through November.

The exhibit is only open at night on Wednesday-Friday, not Saturday, so be sure to plan accordingly. Admission is $15 for adults ($5 if you are member, or if you are with a member who has guest passes, like me). Other visit details are listed here. Be sure to support Cheekwood while this wonderful installation is here. We need this botanical garden to thrive and bring more incredible art exhibits to the city!

Seasons Are A-Changin’

April 19, 2013 by Leah Leave a Comment

I should be washing the stained dishes piled in my kitchen sink that have been sitting there since having a friend over for dinner. I should be packing for my trip to Long Island on Saturday. I should have taken Benadryl because my nose is running away with itself thanks to spring allergies. I should be praying for my friend with cancer. I should be praying for the family at home who just lost a loved one to cancer. I should be figuring out how I’m going to revise my department’s budgets at work so I can have everything turned in before my trip. There is so much on my mind and lots of things I should be doing, but I need to sit a spell, let my brain wander.

I went to a friend’s documentary screening tonight at the Nashville Film Festival. It was fabulous. The film is called Nashville 2012 and highlights stories from the city that really gave me a new perspective on the life that exists here. I cried on the drive home, in the dark, being tossed by the winds of the coming storm headed our way tonight. There is so much I don’t know about life. So much that overwhelms me with awe. Peoples’ stories are mind blowing if you take the time to sit and listen. Even the most ordinary among us has a history. I hope that as I grow older, I remember to listen, to hear what is not spoken, to see what lies beneath the surface.

Spring finally came and blew me away with its splendor. The cherry tree in my backyard was breathtaking. The tulips at Cheekwood put on such a show, displaying the colors of the rainbow as they were intended to be shown. My seedlings are struggling to survive and I’m holding out hope that they’re going to make it. I walk around my yard every morning, anxiously checking on the plants, spraying the dratted aphids on the daylilies, watering the one drooping armeria, dead-heading the blooming perennials, fretting over the beet seeds I planted, worrying about whether I need to re-pot the Japanese maple…this yard will bring me such joy and be the death of me all at the same time.

Pictures really are worth a thousand words, and I could blather on, but I’d rather show you the magic happening around here.

The little seedlings have grown up a bit since putting them outside in the sun, but boy are they behind schedule. I feel like a failure. Next year I am definitely buying a grow light. No more depending on the intermittent sun of early spring.

Cheekwood Botanical Garden aka the place I go when I need to be surrounded by a bit of beauty.

Euphorbia!!!

The weather here is still weird. I might try to put some seeds in before I leave, but the evening temps will still be down in the 40s. No idea what’s going on, but it needs to stop. I’m excited to go home (as in the place that still feels like home to me), but I also feel like there is so much to do here and so little time. It will be wonderful to sit by the water, to shut the brain off from numbers and open myself back up to creativity again. For now, I need to go take care of some of the things I should be doing. The rain just started pouring down and the laundry just finished spinning.