Thursday, 17 December 2015

Brookgreen Gardens, Huntington Beach

December 16

While Dave was truly enjoying some R and R at the campground, I walked an hour to get to  Brookgreen Gardens which cover more than 9000 acres.  The Gardens include a vast sculpture garden began by sculptor Anna Hyatt Huntington and her wealthy businessman husband Archer Huntington (after whom the State Park where we are staying is named).  The sculptures are mostly made of bronze (many by Huntington herself), others of aluminum, stone or marble.  The collection includes more than 1200 works by American artists from the 1930s to the present.










Much of the land was occupied by rice plantations and one can walk a trail where the life of plantation slaves is depicted.


 Also within the huge property is a zoo featuring native wildlife (several birds, otters, alligators, foxes) and some domestic animals as well as a small sanctuary for injured animals, primarily birds of prey.







 
A most interesting visit, a long walking day and many mixed feelings about the history, the beauty, the stewardship and past and current use of this land. 
 

No comments:

Post a Comment