Audrey Hepburn’s love of nature and gardens, her appreciation of simple honest beauty in the world, imbue her every phrase and gesture. Shortly after filming in 17 spectacular gardens in seven countries, Audrey Hepburn delightedly affirmed that she could have never imagined the gardens “would reveal the diverse range of expression they did.”
Eloquently, naturally, Hepburn imparts an unerring sense of place – of serenity, in the ancient moss temple garden Saiho-ji in Kyoto Japan; of sensual beauty, in the soft, velvety air of the tropics in the Dominican Republic; of pure enchantment, during high rose tide in the magnificent rose garden at Mottisfont Abbey in Hampshire.
Hepburn filming locations include: in the Netherlands, The Keukenhof Garden, the Tulip Fields of Lisse; in the Dominican Republic, Villa Pancha; in America, Historic Mount Vernon; in Japan, Saiho-Ji, Shinshin-An; in Italy, Giardino di Ninfa, Villa Gamberaia; in France, Claude Monet’s Giverny, La-Roseraie de L’Haÿ-les-Roses, Chateau de Courances, Jardin du Luxembourg; in England, Mottisfont Abbey, Tintinhull House, Chilcombe Garden, Hidcote Bartram Village and Hidcote Manor.
Hepburn appears with world-renowned garden writer, designer, historian Penelope Hobhouse in Flower Gardens, and with the late, highly distinguished rosarian Sir Graham Stuart Thomas in Roses & Rose Gardens. Prodigious British garden author and designer John Brookes, and acclaimed American artist and garden designer Ryan Gainey each appear in Country Gardens. Hepburn shares the narration with venerable British actor Michael York.
The Programs
Roses & Rose Gardens
Audrey Hepburn leads an
enchanting adventure with the rose. From the French
ideal of a rose garden at La Roseraie de l’Hays les Roses,
south of Paris, to the unsurpassed collection and allure of
old roses during high rose tide at Mottisfont Abbey in
Hampshire, England, the rose affirms its rightful place as
the ultimate flower of legend, romance and beauty.
Guest Appearance: The late Sir Graham Stuart Thomas, the
premiere rosarian of the 20th century, and author of world
renown.
Formal
Gardens
Audrey Hepburn eloquently
pursues the rich evolution of formal garden design through
centuries: from the Renaissance gardens of Italy (Villa
Gamberaia, Villa Lante), the grand 17th century gardens of
France (Chateau de Courances, Versailles) through to the
fusion of the formal and natural styles in 20th century
gardens of England (Hidcote Manor, Tintinhull House).
UNESCO World Heritage Sites Featured: Hadrian’s Villa in
Rome, The Alhambra in Granada. Guest Appearance: Penelope
Hobhouse, distinguished British garden authority, designer
and writer.
Tulips
& Spring Bulbs
Audrey Hepburn unfurls
the remarkable story of the queen of spring flowers, the
“exquisitely simple” tulip – its influence intertwined
through centuries with the history and art of her native
Holland. Fine and rare tulip specimens share the
stage with fritillaria, hyacinth, muscari and narcissus –
planted en masse, in mixed plantings, and naturalistically
in spring meadows or woodland settings. Gardens Featured:
Het Loo Palace, Hortus Bulborum, and Keukenhof, in Holland;
Chenies Manor and Garsington Manor, in England.
Flower
Gardens
Audrey Hepburn leads an
artful exploration through the exquisite perennial flower
borders at Tintinhull House in Somerset, England, and
Claude Monet’s profuse, impressionistic paths of color in
his gardens at Giverny. These beautiful flower gardens are
each unique, exemplary interpretations of the more
naturalistic, mixed planting style that first emerged in
the early 20th century, which for many, represents the
ideal to this day. Special Guest Appearance: curator of the
gardens at Tintinhull House, renowned British garden
authority Penelope Hobhouse. (Part 2).
Country
Gardens
Audrey Hepburn surveys
the range of use and character of the country garden: from
romantic Giardino del Ninfa, south of Rome; to the simple
cottage gardens in Hidcote Bartrim Village in the Cotswold,
to Ryan Gainey’s charming interpretation in Decatur,
Georgia in America; or the beautiful, life-sustaining
farmhouse gardens of Chilcombe House in the rolling hills
and chalk downs of Dorset County, England. Guest
appearance: John Brookes, British garden designer and
author of “Country Gardens”, and American artist and
designer, Ryan Gainey.
Japanese
Gardens
Audrey Hepburn sets the
course through centuries of artful expression of Japan’s
cultural reverence for nature, for the natural world: the
ancient moss temple garden of Saiho-ji; the
Karesansui-style or Dry Landscape gardens at Ryoan-Ji,
Daisen-In and Ryogen-En; the borrowed landscape of stunning
beauty at Shinyodo; the exquisite Hakusanso Tea Garden; the
extensive pond gardens of the The Heian Shrine; the Hill
& Pond garden style in the oldest Japanese garden in
America; concluding with the breathtakingly beautiful
stroll garden at Shinshin-An in Kyoto.
Tropical
Gardens
Audrey Hepburn surrenders
heartily to the lure of the tropics – to the unrivaled
diversity of plant species, their brilliance of colors,
leaf shapes and forms. As enduringly captured two centuries
apart in the paintings and writings of “exploratrices
intrépides” Marianne North and Margaret Mee; from within
the lush, personal paradise – overflowing with tree
perching orchids – at Villa Pancha in the Domincan
Republic. And in the world’s renowned botanical gardens:
from one of Asia’s oldest, Keban Raya in Indonesia; to
Hawaii’s youngest, the magnificent Ho`omaluhia on Oahu, to
name a few.
Public
Gardens & Trees
From the beautifully
restored gardens at George Washington’s Historic Mount
Vernon, Audrey Hepburn posits a highly individualistic view
of public gardens and urban environs. How the “greening of
Paris” led to the fine array of parks and gardens in the
city today: intimate ‘pocket parks’ (Square Rene
Viviani), former grand royal gardens (Jardin de
Luxembourg) and spectacular pleasure gardens (Bois de
Bologne) among them. The program concludes with
Audrey Hepburn’s moving tribute to trees and nature,
reading from the diary of Anne Frank.
Gardens of the
World with Audrey Hepburn
DVD Program Titles & Chapters
Roses & Rose
Gardens. A glorious adventure with the ultimate
flower of legend, romance and beauty: 1) The French Ideal,
2) Mottisfont Abbey and Audrey Hepburn with Sir Graham
Stuart Thomas, 3) A Rose Revolution, 4) For Every Garden,
5) Ode to the Rose, 6) Breadth of Beauty.
Formal Gardens. An
enchanting journey through the rich evolution of formal
garden design: 1) The Formal Ideal and Origins, 2) Villa
Lante, 3) 17th Century France, 4) The Pendulum Swings, 5)
Hidcote Manor, 6) A Formal Conclusion (Audrey Hepburn
w/Penelope Hobhouse, Pt 1).
Tulips & Spring Bulbs. A bright survey of spring blossoms and
their inspiration – in art and in the garden: 1).The Queen
of Spring, 2) Tulipomania, 3) A Golden Age, 4) In Every
Bulb a Flower, 5) Garden Favorites, 6) Nature’s Way.
Japanese Gardens. A serene journey reflecting centuries of
cultural reverence for nature. 1) The Moss Temple, 2)
Karesansui, Dry Landscape Gardens, 3) A Reflection of
Nature, 4) Hill & Pond and Tea Gardens, 5) The
Strolling Garden, Shinshin-an.
Flower Gardens. An artful exploration of Monet’s gardens
at Giverny and classic perennial borders in England: 1) The
English Style, 2) Audrey with Penelope Hobhouse, Part 2, 3)
The Age of Flowers, 4) Audrey’s Favorite Flower Names, 5)
Monet’s Flower Gardens, 6) Monet’s Water Garden.
Country Gardens.
An intimate exploration of earthly country garden
pleasures: 1) Summer Afternoon, 2) Ryan Gainey, in Decatur,
GA, 3) Through the Ages, 4) The Cottage Garden w/John
Brookes, 5) Ninfa, 6) The Country Ideal.
Tropical Gardens. A wide ranging affirmation of nature’s
floristic richness: 1) Nature’s Imagination, 2) The Lure of
the Tropics, 3) Illustrious Legacies, 4) Villa Pancha, 5)
Botanical Wealth, 6) Forevermore a Garden.
Public Gardens & Trees. Mt. Vernon and the story of the greening
of Paris lead a poignant tribute to trees and nature: 1)
Mount Vernon, 2) From Royal to Public, 3) The Greening of
Paris and Pocket Parks, 4) Trees, 5) An Ode to Trees &
Nature, Audrey Hepburn reading from the Diary of Anne
Frank.