Hepworth Wakefield Garden
Wakefield is the birthplace of both Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore. In 2011, The Hepworth Wakefield, an impressive monolith of concrete opened its doors. Bordered by the river Calder on two sides and a busy road on the third, a long strip of grass remained untouched which the director, Simon Wallis, dreamt of transforming into a public space. Tom Stuart-Smith was selected to convert this blank canvas into a garden. To partition the garden from the busy road, Tom decided to erect a 4 meter wall at one side, creating an enclosed and protected space. Tom carved out beds and paths snaking through the garden. These are at times underlined by a low hedge of beech inviting the public to wander through the space and providing structure in winter. Tom took great care in using a wide array of plants providing interest all year round, from snowdrops emerging in January to asters brightening up the last days of autumn. Colour tones also change through the seasons with 60000 bulbs planted by Katy Merrington and her team of volunteers, especially tulips announcing the arrival of Spring. When summer comes, purple and yellows are at the forefront with swathes of perennials such as Salvia 'Caradonna' and Achillea 'Coronation Gold', followed by a mix of pink and blue hues with Echinacea pallida and Amsonia.