Product Description

The lush and decadent beauty of over 40 New Orleans' gardens, both public and private, is fully revealed along with the historical, cultural and environmental conditions that shaped this romantic and mysterious city.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1145629 in Books
• Published on: 2001-03-01
• Original language: English
• Dimensions: 2.90 pounds
• Binding: Hardcover
• 208 pages

From Amazon.com
Fragrant. Lush. Seductive. Can these words describe any city other than New Orleans? With new plant life bursting from every cranny and ancient cypress trees, the gardens here present many unusual combinations of freshness and decay. Gardens of New Orleans has captured this magnificence in full glory, with page after page of beautifully green photographs.

Authors Lake Douglas and Jeannette Hardy include historical sketches, maps, and photographs that provide an informative introduction to the city. The outdoor French Market photographs show piles of fruit you can almost taste, even if the picture is in sepia tones. The section on public spaces follows, bringing glossy color photos of charming statuary and enormous live oaks that are memorable both for their size and grace. The final chapter is filled with close-up shots of many private gardens in the city, and show off the best New Orleans has to offer: peaceful balconies, bright flowers, antique ornaments, and artfully trimmed hedges. The lovely Ursiline convent is included in this section, with its glowing white statues and peaceful paths for meditation.

In every case, photographer Richard Sexton has captured the remarkable light as it filters through the trees. His close-ups clearly show the vines and sprouts popping up between bricks and under older plants, while his landscapes showcase both the heavy greenery and the well-known cast-iron decorations on houses, fences, and furniture. Whether you're a New Orleans native or simply love impossibly green gardens, this lovely book will bring the rich flavor of this charming city to your living room. --Jill Lightner

About the Author
Lake Douglas is a garden historian living in New Orleans and writes for numerous architecture and garden publications. Jeannette Hardy is the Garden writer at the Times-Picayune. She lives and gardens in New Orleans. Richard Sexton lives in New Orleans and teaches photography at New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts. His work has appeared in New Orleans: Elegance and Decadence and Vestiges of Grandeur: Plantations of Louisiana's River Road.