BBC4’s documentary Bacchas uncovered: Ancient God of Ecstasy tells the Ancient Greek story of Dionysus’ creation myth, revealing how this ecstatic god blurred boundaries on every level. This led me to discover Painshill Park, an 18th century landscape garden in Surrey created by Hon Charles Hamilton. He embarked on two Grand Tours across Europe before acquiring the land at Painshill. With ancient artefacts in his possession and natural beauty in his head – along with exotic plants seen on his tours – his vision was to create ‘living paintings’ in a new style of magical garden. Hamilton was a pioneer in wine making and purchased the statue of Bacchus (one of his most prised possessions) upon his travels in Rome. The Statue, now situated at the entrance to the park, greets victors to the gardens and is one of a number of sights within the grounds. Full of exotic trees, an ancient crystal grotto, bridges across different islands, a water wheel, viewing platforms and the temple itself, Painshill park makes a perfect location for a shoot. The following images were taken during a trip to the grounds and have been hand edited in the same style as I had been collaging with previously.
