| |
Internationally-known, madly
passionate, stimulating, thought-provoking, exuberant, creative,
romantic, whimsical, embracing …. mere words are inadequate to
describe the force of nature that is Ryan Gainey. He is gardener,
poet, raconteur, philosopher, mentor,
 verbite,
visionary, designer, and showman all in one.
Growing up in Hartsville, South Carolina he found himself keenly
interested in the natural world around him. Mentors in that rural
Southern community nurtured his love of growing things, much as he
mentors others today. He went on to study Ornamental Horticulture at
Clemson University under Professor F. W. Thode. Later he received an
Honorary Doctorate in Letters from Coker College in his native
Hartsville.
Moving to Atlanta, he at last began to nurture his own piece of
land, a two-acre garden in Decatur, Georgia which has been featured
in every major gardening publication in the United States and
abroad. Visiting this paradise is a highlight each year for the
thousands who partake of the Atlanta Botanical Garden’s Gardens for
Connoisseurs tour. His garden has been a featured stop for 20 years.
Mr. Gainey is the owner of Ryan Gainey & Company, and has designed
gardens around the world. Each garden is an individual vision based
on classical design, and filled with the love of romance, informed
with a connoisseur’s vision, in tune with seasonal changes, and
inspired by the myths, legends, and fantasies of garden history.
He works on both public and private gardens. He headed up the design
team for the Visitor’s Center and its garden at the South Carolina
State Botanical Garden at Clemson University. He is currently
working on private gardens from East Hampton, New York, to Palm
Beach, Florida.
He has been commissioned to direct the garden development of Lyons
View Gardens, a 35-acre project in Knoxville, Tennessee. The garden
site overlooks the Tennessee River as it stretches towards the Smoky
Mountains. Its first phase is a classical garden in the Renaissance
style using indigenous materials both horticulturally and
architecturally. The ever-varying scale and style of his public and
private commissions serve as a constant source of stimulation.
Be not dismayed if you cannot hire Mr. Gainey to create a garden for
you. He gladly shares his vision in private and public garden
seminars. He has shared the podium with such notable international
gardeners as Rosemary Verey and Penelope Hobhouse as well as almost
every U. S. garden expert.
Or perhaps you will find yourself the owner of a piece from The Ryan
Gainey Collection of garden accents. These include handmade pots
personally designed by Mr. Gainey and crafted in Italy from fine
Impruneta terra cotta. The line also features accessories for the
table.
He is legendary in his work with the major events which raise funds
for worthy Atlanta charities. He has fashioned countless virtuoso
parties including the Garden of Eden Ball for the Atlanta Botanical
Garden, the Swan House Ball for the benefit of the Atlanta History
Center, and the Opera Ball for the Atlanta Opera. The High Museum of
Art called upon his imagination to create the patron parties for
their Matisse, Monet, Picasso, Rockwell, and Rings exhibits. He
coordinated the International Olympic Committee party at the
Woodruff Art Center during Atlanta’s 1996 Olympic games. Mr.
Gainey’s love of gardening inspires the horticultural and
floricultural themes for these events, which never fail to delight
and surprise. He also serves as Honorary Ambassador and on the Board
of Trustees for the Southeastern Flower Show, and as a Board member
for Atlanta’s Cherokee Garden Library.
Mr. Gainey believes so strongly in the philosophy that the “house
and the garden should become one”, that he has lent his talent to
many design and architectural projects as well. Recently, he
collaborated in the design and construction of a speculative luxury
home and garden in Atlanta. That project was a showcase for the idea
of integrating home and garden and the surrounding landscape. His
designing of the charming Brookgreen Cottage for Brookgreen Gardens
in Pawley’s Island, South Carolina has been well-documented. It was
a commission from Southern Living magazine in which Mr. Gainey was
charged with creating a Southern-style cottage showcasing how one
could create a home linking the interior and exterior as an
integrated whole.
Most recently Mr. Gainey has become one of the founding fathers of a
community to be called “Serenbe”, providing the vision for the
creation of an entirely new integration of home, community, and
nature set in an idyllic expanse of south Fulton County near
Atlanta. Here, a community of people will find a home within a
community of trees. This enormous project provides the best proving
ground for tenets he has long held dear. Within this community, he
believes “we can take the best from both worlds without taking the
city from the country or deserting the country for the city . We can
again possess the spirit and passion of life. The romantic nuances
of our agrarian past can merge with our contemporary ideas and
create tomorrow’s dream.”
But the quintessential laboratory and showcase for this man’s
creative genius is his own turn-of-the-century farmhouse in Decatur,
Georgia. The property at 129 Emerson Avenue is in a constant state
of rejuvenation. Now only does he develop his horticultural gift on
this land, but his garden, home, and auxiliary structures provide an
opportunity to display the work of many Southern artists. Well-known
for fostering the creative development of craftsmen and artists, his
commissions have resulted in highly decorative works which abound on
his property. His gift to us all is that this wonderful
work-in-progress is open to the public daily.
HE’S FEATURED IN COUNTLESS
MAGAZINES AND BOOKS
Mr. Gainey’s own garden and those of his clients have been shared
with the world through such magazines as:
- House & Garden,
- Veranda,
- Fine
Gardening,
- Southern
Accents,
- Southern
Homes,
- Southern
Living,
- House
Beautiful,
- Flower and
Garden,
- Horticulture,
- Garden Design,
- Food and Wine,
- Victoria, and
- France’s Cote
Ouest.
His home was the cover story for the
August 1992 issue of House & Garden magazine.
His own garden has been included in many books including Gardens of
the South, House Beautiful’s Outdoor Living and Gardens, Frances
Schultz’s Atlanta at Home and Atlanta at Table, Gardens of Georgia,
Better Homes and Gardens Garden Style, and perhaps most fittingly in
Rosemary Verey’s wonderful book, The American Man’s Garden.
HE’S AN AUTHOR
Mr. Gainey’s first book, The Well-Placed Weed, is an expression of
the Southern roots and inspirations for his work and his
garden-centered lifestyle both inside and out. His second book, The
Well-Set Table, is a celebration of food, fetes, and flowers.
His charming poem, “The Weekly Weeder”, has been captured in print,
in paint, and in stone. This story of the search for love through
the seasons teaches us all to embrace the common names of typical
Southern garden flowers. Ever the teacher, Mr. Gainey has also
incorporated a glossary into this poem, with the genus and species
of each flower, and information on its origin and its usefulness to
man.
He is currently working on two new books. Cut and Come Again,, being
written with Conne Ward-Cameron, focuses on his own garden and past
projects reflecting his personal philosophy of “making the house and
the garden one”. The second is a children’s book, telling the
whimsical tale of how the rainbow came to earth. It’s entitled The
Rainbow Story.
HE STARS ON FILM
His life and work have been captured on film as well. His video,
“Creating the Romantic Garden”, is a beautifully filmed
inspirational lesson in new horticultural ideas. Connoisseur
magazine called it “the best garden videocassette ever produced”.
And The London Times stated “this American video highlights what we
have been missing in England”. The video is available by
contacting Ryan Gainey at 404-377-1494. The price for the
video is $30, which includes shipping and handling.
His first book, The Well-Placed Weed, and his garden philosophy were
featured in a seven-part PBS documentary series, produced by Conne
Ward-Cameron, which aired nationally. Mr. Gainey’s philosophy and
gardens have been featured on HGTV’s “A Gardener’s Diary”, and his
Brookgreen Garden cottage was the subject of an HGTV documentary
special.
|
|
