“To unite all times and all places in a single garden” — Carmontelle

Created for Marie-Antoinette, the English garden of the Petit Trianon, blending refinement with exoticism, offered a striking contrast to the jardins à la française of Versailles: a perfect illustration of the “garden mania” that swept across Europe starting in 1750.

Among the most marvelous examples, one cannot fail to mention Kew Gardens and Stowe in England; in Germany, the gardens of Schwetzingen Palace, residence of the Elector Palatine; those of Laeken in the Netherlands, home of the Saxe-Coburgs; the projects and achievements of Gustav III, the “Gardener King,” for his residences at Haga and Drottningholm in Sweden; the English gardens of Tsarskoye Selo and Pavlovsk for Tsarina Catherine and later Tsar Paul I; and finally, in France, Parc Monceau, the Désert de Retz, Ermenonville—where Jean-Jacques Rousseau sought refuge—or Méréville, where the painter Hubert Robert left his mark.

Through 250 illustrations featuring paintings, drawings, furniture, garden architecture, costumes, rare books, and photographs, this art and history book highlights the variety of these irregular landscapes and their often eccentric fabriques (follies). In these spaces, philosophical or Masonic dimensions sit alongside the most whimsical exoticism—microcosmic and encyclopedic gardens whose reach is universal, reflecting the world and the ideals of the Enlightenment.

Blending nature and artifice, they unveil the emergence of a new decorative style, revealing a reinvented art de vivre at the crossroads of nature, travel, festivities, and pleasure.

Author : Elisabeth Maisonnier

Edition : El Viso

Publishing date : mai 2026

Dimensions : 28 x 22 cm

Number of pages : 336

French