DIG customers pick up on the idea right away, circling the display as thoughtfully as if attending First Thursday, many commenting that DIG's plant gallery looks so European. We are often so busy weeding that we overlook the variety of artistic principles inherent in garden-making. And it is true that gardens, like performances, can be dramatic, and are always ephemeral. We have much in common with installation artists, who focus on creating atmosphere and movement through space. We deal in the auditory when we add moving water to the garden, or encourage bird song.
Most artists deal with ethics on some level, and so do gardeners.
Gardeners may think they are concentrating on the practicalities, or on the visuals, but we are really telling stories out there in the dirt, composing our autobiographies. Valerie Easton is a horticultural librarian and writes about plants and gardens for Pacific Northwest magazine.