Cecil Beaton (1904-1980)

FLOWER STUDIES, c.1950s. A group of silver gelatin prints (3), each measuring 207 x 195mm, each with the photographer's stamp and Odette Arnaud's agency and copyright stamps verso. Each print framed individually, measuring 535 x 435mm.

The Garden Museum: Working regularly with Britain’s top floral arranger Beaton developed a deep understanding for the importance of growing cut flowers and their versatility for styling. In 1947 Cecil Beaton bought Reddish House in Broad Chalke, Wiltshire. He wrote ‘I am the proud owner of an exquisite country seat… it is the beginning of a new interest, and I am thrilled at the prospect,’ It was here he continued to develop his interest in flowers as he set about improving and extending the property’s gardens. One of Beaton’s most ambitious projects for the garden was to buy up the water meadows bordering the River Ebble in front of the house and create a water garden, ‘with a little private trout stream and a lake with an island, all for my own benefit’. Beaton used the house to host friends and illustrious visitors including artist David Hockney and Hollywood actress Greta Garbo. Flowers took centre stage in his preparations for guests as he filled each reception space with large decorative displays. A wooden Strawson & Son greenhouse together with a large cutting garden enabled Beaton to grow an abundance of annuals for cutting and arranging. In the basement of the house Beaton designed a large flower room which held his tools for cutting and displaying arrangements. This space often featured in photograph shoots and was a key part of the house under his ownership; in a 1962 House & Garden interview, flowers, most likely from the garden, adorn every single photograph of Beaton around his home.