Product Description

A completely new edition of the classic account of the garden designs of one of the greatest garden designers of the twentieth century.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #148706 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-25
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 256 pages

Review
British landscape architect Russell Page is arguably the greatest garden designer of the 20th century. In this handsome hardcover book, a new edition of the 1991 account of his life's work, the authors trace Page's career through more than 50 years--from his beginning at the Longleat estate in England in the 1930s to the 140-acre PepsiCo sculpture park in Purchase, New York, in the 1980s. the stunning photos alone make this a worthwhile purchase. --Landscape Architecture

Russell Page was arguably the most famous garden designer of the 20th century. This new edition of a classic book sumptuously captures the feel of the gardens he designed around the world , while each chapter tells the story of one amazing creation after another. --Seattle Times

The garden projects of the distinguished British landscape designer Russell Page (1906-1985) are recalled in this revised edition, celebrating his prominent works. The authors and friends of Page, Marina Schinz and Gabrielle van Zuylen, researched and photographed examples of his efforts over his prolific career. With studies in art as background, Page examined famed architecture and garden design throughout his travels during his lifetime, applying the principles of the classical style to the gardens he designed for the wealthy in Europe and the Americas. Page became known for his excellence in the development of an over-all plan for a site, establishing his reputation internationally; the authors relate the challenges he faced in many site developments and their design solutions. Inspiring both professional and amateur gardeners, as well as designers, with their beauty, breath-taking photographs of his work trace his artistic skills as they developed through the years. (Winter 2008/2009 issue) -- The National Gardener

About the Author
Gabrielle van Zuylen was born in France and lives in Paris. She has written numerous other books on gardens and garden history. Marina Schinz was born in Switzerland and now lives in Italy. She is one of the world's leading garden photographers, and her work includes the best selling book Visions of Paradise.

Customer Reviews

the gardens of russell page
No words to describe this genius!.How as a landscape gardener,could I have taken ten years to discover his works!!.He is obviously and sadly unknown for his contribution to timeless gardening.This is the "Bible" of landscape gardening,and he is the Van Gogh of gardeners.How can such a valuble and essential book be unavailable!?

Russell Page - An unsung hero
I hadn't even heard of Russell page until I perchanced upon this book in my local bookstore some 5 years ago. I was moved to tears by some of the photographs, and that doesn't happen easily to me. The man was a genius, clear and simple, and his designs reached out and spoke to me in a way very few designers ever have. In my own landscapes, I have been immensely influenced by Russell Page, both through this wonderful book, and his own 'Education of a gardener'. This book is superbly illustrated with colour photographs throughout. The photography is excellent, and the written descriptions are well penned, informative, decriptive but not too long-winded. My copy of this book would be on my list of my top ten material possessions.

A great garden designer and a great book
I had a glance at this book some fithteen years ago in o book-store and... I didn't buy it! My interest in garden design was fairly recent I thought "I can't buy every book on the topic". But the name and the images keept haunting me as other writers referred to Mr Page and pictures of some of his gardens flickered by. By then the book was out of print and unavailable alas. So one snowy day I went to a second-hand book-seller and there it was in the window! I got it instantly and spent the next weeks travelling to England, Italy, USA and his other places of work over and over again, slowly turning the pages of this book. If you have an interest in classical gardens of the Renaissance and Baroque - here is the modern version of their ideals to make you gasp. But it doesn't stop there; wood-lands, ponds and pools, Arab-style and more are to be found in excellent photos. The Italian projects (La Landriana, Villa Silvio Pellico, La Mortella e.g.) are perhaps the most famous ones. They are showed of course, along with the best kept of the many places he designed (far from all his gardens have survived to the present). This is actually the only book on a single designer that I've felt I've had to own. But then I am a lover of classical art and design...