In The Garden

A bulb display inspired by the special exhibition Gainsborough: The Fashion of Portraiture has been planted in the Fifth Avenue Garden, designed to evoke an English countryside cottage garden. As the weather warms over the course of the exhibition, the planting along the Fifth Avenue fence will evolve from an early-season spread of snowdrops and crocuses to double-flowered tulips interspersed with Persian lilies, mimicking the peonies and foxgloves often found in cottage gardens.

As spring turns to summer, the border will change to a planting inspired by the special exhibition Ruffles & Ribbons: Fashion Plates from the Time of Marie Antoinette. Flowering plants such as sweet peas, “Pink Champagne” California poppies, and “Café au Lait” dahlias will call to mind the color palette of the fashion plates in the exhibition, while foliage plants such as angel wings and Joseph’s coat will evoke the fashion accessories used at the time.