Happy Friday, everyone! As promised, we’re back with another stop from Fine Gardening’s Stunning Gardens of the Netherlands tour. Today, Danielle is taking us to Singer Laren, where Piet Oudolf’s layered plantings surround a collection of contemporary sculpture.
Singer Laren is a museum and cultural center in the Netherlands with a long history of garden design. Landscape architect L.A. Springer laid out the original garden, and later versions included work by Mien Ruys, Elisabeth de Lestrieux, and Marcel Wolterinck. After a major redevelopment of the museum and theater complex, Singer Laren brought in Piet Oudolf to rethink the landscape. The Piet Oudolf sculpture garden opened to the public in 2018.
Another stop from that day, De Theetuin in Weesp, was featured in yesterday’s GPOD.
The sculptures were the starting point for Oudolf’s design, not the plants. He arranged perennials and grasses around each piece with height, texture, and seasonal change in mind. Here, Caspar Berger’s *Self-Portrait 3* (2005) rises above the surrounding plants on its wooden base.
Oudolf used more than 70 perennial species throughout the garden. Repetition creates rhythm across the beds, while grasses and upright perennials weave through those masses and shift naturally in the wind.
Dutch artist Guido Geelen created two sheep after seven sculptures were stolen from Singer Laren in 2007. One stands here among globe thistle (Echinops cvs., Zones 3–9), lamb’s ear (Stachys byzantina, Zones 4–8), ornamental grasses, and other perennials.
An elevated sculpture provides a strong vertical focal point. It’s a great example of how art can become part of the garden composition rather than simply an object placed within it.
Levi van Veluw’s In the Depths of Memory emerges from a mass of asters and surrounding foliage. Unlike the elevated piece seen earlier, this sculpture sits among the plants, where flowers and foliage partially obscure the figures. The contrast shows how differently art can interact with the landscape depending on its placement.
From inside the museum, the sculpture, ornamental grasses, and architecture read as one continuous scene. The large window helps blur the boundary between indoors and out, so the art and garden feel connected rather than separate.
Of all the sculptures Danielle shared from this stop, Levi van Veluw’s In the Depths of Memory might be my favorite. I love the arrangement of heads across the platform and table. It’s unusual and a little strange, but that’s exactly what I like about it. Thanks for taking us along, Danielle!
We want to see YOUR garden!
Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!
To submit, fill out the Garden Photo of the Day Submission Form.
You can also send 5–10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.
Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here
Fine Gardening Recommended Products
ARS Telescoping Long Reach Pruner
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
Telescopes from 4 to 7′. Cut and Hold (160) Blades. Drop forged blades for unsurpassed long lasting sharpness. Lightweight, 2.3 lbs., for continued use. Perfectly balanced for easy pruning.
The Crevice Garden: How to make the perfect home for plants from rocky places
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
A crevice garden replicates the environmental conditions of mountain tops, deserts, coastlines, and other exposed or rocky places on earth. These striking garden features provide perfect conditions for the plants native to these far-off places, bringing the cultivation of these precious gems within everybody’s reach.
Scotts Cordless Grass-Shear/Shrub-Trimmer Combo
Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.
With a built-in 7.2-volt lithium-ion battery, this little guy weighs less than 2 lb. and can zip through all your minor pruning tasks quickly and easily.
– 13.5 x 3 x 5 inches
– Uses a 7.2-Volt 2Ah high-capacity built-in lithium-ion battery; Includes a fast charger
