Away On A Visit

This past weekend, Bill and I took a quick trip to Los Angeles, California for our stained glass business and had a free day on Saturday. We decided to take a day trip to the Huntington Library and Gardens in Pasadena to see the artwork on display in the several museum buildings and stroll the grounds. The grounds are extensive, and visitors need a good pair of comfortable walking shoes, sunscreen and a sense of adventure! The variety of the themed gardens include Rose, Australian, Japanese, Sub-Tropical, Lily Pond, Children's, and Cactus gardens.

So what does this have to do with Edward Gorey, apart from the impressive Gorey display in the gift shop? Whenever I visit a new place I bring along my influences and inspirations with me. For our trip to the Huntington, I was forcibly reminded of many books and drawings by Edward Gorey! In the photo at the top of the post, if you remove the palms, you have a Gorey vista complete with manicured lawn and statues - a perfect setting for a mischief to occur.

Anyone who wonders what it would be like to visit The Evil Garden, Edward Gorey's fantastically deadly park where the foliage is forbidding and getting out alive is practically impossible, should visit the Huntington's Cactus Garden! This is one garden where you definitely do not want to stray from the paths. Located to the left of the entrance, one of the first things we ran across on our way into the garden was a lush plant with bright red, juicy berries...and a sign saying NOT to eat them as they would certainly disagree with you!

The further we went into the Cactus Garden, the more we felt like the plants were allowing us to pass, only to lure us into a false sense of security while they picked the right time to pounce! This is not a small cluster of interesting cactus, this garden is a maze of walkways with rare and beautiful plants of jaw-dropping proportions and quantities. We were happy we picked up a map when we entered the grounds, because we found ourselves wandering the paths of this garden without knowing where we were exactly.

The Lily Ponds were beautifully choked with water plants, fish and even turtles. I kept an eye out for Little Zooks to go flying past on his trajectory.

When next in Pasadena, visit the spectacular Huntington Library and Gardens and look at things with a Gorey perspective! Who knows what you may see...