Cynthia Imogen Hammond

You have long held a particular interest in gardens designed, cultivated, or preserved by women. How did this interest inform your encounter with Marie Clews’s garden at the Château de La Napoule?

« In all my past projects, the gardens I worked with had either disappeared or had changed beyond recognition. At best I had access to archival traces of the spaces, which I would use to rediscover the design intentions and garden qualities of the lost space, as well as anything I could learn about the woman – or women – who created these living artworks. So to be able to have a residency quite literally in a garden that had been designed by a woman was thrilling to me! And what a garden! I had done as much research on Marie’s gardens as possible before coming to France for my first residency in 2023, but the nature of Marie’s approach is such that only a fraction of her overall design can be seen in a single photograph, or even understood from aerial photographs. She designed the gardens here to be immersive, harmonious, and continuous, but also unexpected and surprising. I did not realize until I came here, for example, how she developed pathways that would rise and fall in order to keep one’s attention until just the right moment, when one stops, looks up, and finds in front of them a beautiful water feature, an archway, or a window from Venice. Marie’s gardens are a treasure in terms of their historic references, but also for understanding the haptic, sensory experience that is possible in a beautifully-designed garden. Given that these are not floral gardens, I feel that her accomplishment in this regard is truly significant. She felt this too, which is why she took great care before her death to ensure that the gardens as well as the castle would be recognized by the French state as heritage. All this to say that my previous work on lost gardens by women was excellent training to be able to work with a living garden, or in this case, gardens plural. But nothing prepared me for the extraordinary complexity and depth of Marie’s gardens. »

Working from the château’s archives, you discovered the little-known history of the white bird menagerie. How did this revelation transform your perspective on the garden and the works you created?

« In addition to being the kingdom of freedom, art, and creativity, the gardens of Marie Clews were distinct for their embrace of nonhuman kingdoms. We would expect, of course, to  find the kingdom of the plant world, which framed and sheltered the human comings and goings of the castle. But in these gardens, the kingdom of the birds also became well established. The family sought out  exotic white birds, many from Africa, to be co-inhabitants of the gardens. Archival photographs show white swans, egrets, flamingos, fantail doves, and cranes sharing the space of the gardens with the family’s beloved white bulldogs. Green parrots, half-tame magpies, and a lone marabout named Don are photographed repeatedly, demonstrating the birds’ importance within the overall setting of the Chateau (an importance that resonates with many of the decorative and sculptural elements in Henry Clews’ work). Occasionally, photographs show interactions between the human and bird kingdoms that inhabited the garden. In one photograph from the early days of WWII, Marie Clews and her long-time employee, Miss Coles, sit at a table in the garden with their whippet Peri and a young solider. “Craney”, a much-adored white crane, known for her regal manner, joins the group at the table. Marie, Miss Coles, and Peri all look fully at ease. The  soldier is clearly bemused by this non-hierarchical meeting of kingdoms!

I was enchanted by the discovery of the avian aspects of the garden. I was also troubled by it. As loved as they were for their beauty and companionship, the birds did not enjoy the same freedoms that their human counterparts enjoyed at the Chateau. But the number of images in the archives stands as a testament to a rare and complex moment of interspecies presence. I wanted my paintings to respect this complex presence, and to offer a speculative space to imagine the agencies of the birds, beyond the photographs.

The birds in the archives also prompted me to think about the non-human presences in the gardens today. Many wild birds take refuge in the Chateau’s grounds today, including mourning doves, magpies, and seabirds. There are other animals too, such as a fox, a cat, frogs, and many tiny lizards. The white, interwar birds made me more attentive to who might be living here today. »

You often speak of the importance of immersing yourself in a place, between solitary observation and interaction with the communities connected to it. How did this immersion unfold at La Napoule?

« Here I have had the exceptional opportunity to meet myself fully as an artist. The kingdom of creative freedom has welcomed me with open arms! It is a joyful, exquisite experience each time. I am a solitary person by nature: creative action, for me, requires solitude. But I am happiest when I have the privilege to work with and in a community, especially a “community of care” such as can be found here at the Château. Every morning, from before sunrise until after sunset, people are working here to make the Chateau more beautiful, more resilient, and more welcoming. The mission of La Napoule Art Foundation shines like a light in every gesture, from tending the gardens to making beds, to updating the website and leading tour groups. There is such extraordinary love, joy, and energy here. Every artist who comes here to prepare for or create work feels this energy, which I can only describe as a healing force. And there seems to be a genius at work in the selection of artists who come here, as there is often such harmony between us. Not in the sense that what we make is similar, but in the sense that true friendship becomes possible here in a way that strikes me as precious and rare.

All this allowed for an immersion like none other, in my experience of artist residencies. I had all the time alone that I needed to experience the gardens, the archives, and the larger setting of La Napoule. I had all the time I needed to produce my work. But I also had meaningful connection with others, which supported and infused my solitary creative journey, creating filaments of shared understanding and inspiration. I especially bonded with a poet, Stéphanie Filion, on my first visit in 2023. We share a love of plants, birds, sea glass, and secrets. Our friendship became a way for both of us to keep our immersion in the Chateau alive even back in snowy, cold Canada! We have worked together over the last six months to develop two public ateliers which we will offer as part of the public engagement during my exhibition (on the sounds and scents of the gardens). I am so happy that my special Chateau friend will be part of my exhibition in this way! »

What do you hope visitors will take away, or feel, upon leaving the exhibition “Les Jardins de Marie”?

« The gardens of the Chateau of La Napoule are available for anyone to experience, virtually any day of the year. One could say that they speak for themselves, that art is not necessary for their appreciation. My belief is that if art can do anything, it can intensify and amplify something that might otherwise be quiet in the visitor’s experience. As such, my exhibition aims to amplify the exceptional gardens that Marie Clews created here in La Napoule, and to open the door to the interspecies vibrancy, past and present, in this extraordinary landscape. When we become attuned to such vibrancy in one place, we can feel it anywhere. »