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Hugo Rittson-Thomas: Wildflowers For The Queen

A Celebration of Wildflower Meadows

A new exhibition at the Garden Museum will show photographs from fine-art photographer Hugo Rittson-Thomas’ new book Wildflowers For The Queen, a stunning new project inspired by the achievements of the Coronation Meadows established by HRH The Prince of Wales in 2013. This will be the first time Rittson-Thomas has exhibited works from this book.

Rittson-Thomas says the project aims to “celebrate the rich botanical heritage of the wildflowers and unique meadows of England and to elevate them not only as the stars of the show, but also as valuable and irreplaceable forms of life on our green planet.”

Dates

This exhibition is included in your entry to the Museum. Sponsored by Tilney Smith & Williamson


Cowslip arrangement by Yinari, photography by Hugo Rittson-Thomas

Many of the wildflowers that Hugo photographed were foraged and styled into Ikebana inspired arrangements by London floral studio Yinari.

Rittson-Thomas’ famed mirror technique, at the heart of his 2015 exhibition The Queen’s People, is also used once again to showcase the delicacy of flowers from multiple angles, beautifully showcasing their exhilarating patterns, colours, textures and shapes; whether the photographed flower is in abundance (bluebell or cowslip) or rarely sighted (monkey orchid or lady orchid).

All photos (c) Hugo Rittson-Thomas

Wildflowers For The Queen also raises the question of conservation in Britain. Meadows are one of the UK’s most species-rich and biodiverse habitats, supporting nearly 800 types of flowers and plants, along with 400 species of pollinators and other insects.

Today, surviving fragments of flower-rich meadows and pastures only account for 1% of UK land as we have lost an alarming 7.5 million acres since the 1930s. Most are now too small to qualify for legal protection, meaning that ancient meadows that have existed for a century can disappear in a morning under the plough.

Young visitors are invited to partake in the exhibition by sticking their own wildflower or pollinator drawing to a large scale meadow photograph (materials will be provided). Rittson-Thomas wants as many young people to add their drawing as a reminder of how much life thrives in a wildflower meadow.