How to Choose the Perfect Sculpture for Your Garden

Gardens are creative, diverse and beautiful spaces that can be elevated with the addition of sculpture. The diversity of garden sculptures available to choose from can be mind boggling. How do you choose the right piece? And once you have the right piece where in the garden do you place it?

Over the last couple of months I've been lucky to enjoy garden sculpture in three very different spaces and it's got me thinking about the perfect choice and placement of art for a garden - no matter the size of your outdoor space.

Cheltenham Fresh Art Fair

The Cheltenham Fresh Art Fair is an exciting annual event in the Cheltenham calendar. The exhibition runs annually over a weekend in April and this year I was asked to create a planting display in the Sculpture Park around a beautiful piece by artist Malcolm West called 'Freestyle with Attitude'.

​​​The planting display needed to complement and elevate the sculpture. With a focus on balancing texture, colour, form and movement, I used layered planting to create contrast and depth, allowing the sculpture to rise up from within the planted area.

I limited the plant choice and repeated plant groups through the display to create a cohesive planting with maximum impact. This is a useful technique that you can easily replicate in a garden setting.

In the planting scheme the star of the show was of course the sculpture by Malcolm West. This beautiful artwork of a solitary dancer creates a sense of movement and grace which I mimicked with the use of soft grasses (Autumn moor grass) complimented by elegant foliage and a splash of bright colour added by the bright pink Cirsium flowers.​

RHS Malvern Spring Show

Wandering around the RHS Malvern Spring show a few weeks later was a reminder of just how much garden art is available. The range is extraordinary and there are artworks and sculptures to suit all styles and budgets. From simple metal allium flowerheads on spikes to large moon gates or metal artwork.

It's a real treat to invest in bespoke, handcrafted sculpture, but it's also possible to buy beautiful, standout pieces which require a much smaller investment.

Showborough Sculpture Garden

And finally last week I took my parents and my husband to the Affordable Garden Art Exhibition at Showborough House in Twyning. Each year the garden is opened for free to visitors to come in and enjoy wandering through the colourful and textured planted borders and stately hedges, appreciating a range of well-placed art as they go.

Showborough Garden showcases the importance of correctly placing sculpture within a garden setting and Andrew and Glynis do it so well in these beautiful gardens.

So how do you perfectly place art in a garden setting? There are a few key points to remember for your own garden:

1. How does the sculpture work as a focal point within your garden? Think about how and where it's looked at. Can you glimpse it from the house or does it appear as you move through your garden - enticing you further into the space? A well placed sculpture can lead you down a path or toward a certain point. Always check how the artwork looks from all approaches.

   
   

2. How does the surrounding planting complement and elevate the artwork? The two should blend together seamlessly. It's important that the art doesn't become lost within the border.

   
   

3. The scale and balance of the piece is important. A single larger piece will often sit much better in a smaller space than a collection of smaller pieces. Think about how much impact the sculpture needs to have. The size of the artwork should reflect that. Too small and it'll disappear and won't be appreciated. Too large and it'll overpower the garden and look out of place. A larger, well-placed piece in a smaller space can make the garden appear bigger.

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If you want to talk gardens or garden sculpture or both get in touch with Emma at Wild Edge Garden Design to book in your complimentary garden chat.