LONDON .- The Garden by Siān Davey is now open in a free outdoor exhibition in Soho Photography Quarter, just outside The Photographers’ Gallery. Starting in 2020, British photographer Siān Davey transformed her abandoned garden over three summers into a vibrant space, filled with wildflowers, birdsong and people.

Together with her son, Luke, Davey cultivated a space rooted in love. They researched native flowers and encouraged biodiversity, sourcing seeds and plants locally.

When the flowers bloomed, they called in the community. Everyone had a place in The Garden; the mothers and daughters, the lonely, the marginalised, lovers, the traumatised and heartbroken and those that had concealed a lifetime of shame. They became enfolded into the story of the garden, creating and partaking in the story equally.

‘Everyone has a place in our garden. I am the garden. Those who enter are the garden. Without distinction, without separation’ - Siān Davey

As the garden evolved it became an expression of joy, interconnectedness, yearning, sexuality, and defiance. The garden became a metaphor for the human heart itself.

Alongside the large-scale artworks, visitors can listen to The Garden soundscape (2023, by Siān Davey) and watch the film (2023, by Dylan Friese-Greene and Siān Davey), which plays every day from dusk.

Siān Davey

Siān Davey (b. 1964, Brighton) worked as a psychotherapist for 15 years before launching her career in photography in 2014. She draws on her experience in psychotherapy and as a mother to inform her practice. Her work is in a range of national and international collections including the Victoria and Albert Museum, and The French National Collection, Paris. She lives and works in Dartington, Devon

The Photographers’ Gallery

The Photographers’ Gallery explores how photography is connecting, captivating and radically changing our world today. The Gallery’s programme and spaces – from exhibitions, events and digital platforms, to the galleries, shop and cafe – all explore the beauty, complexity and future of photography. Right outside the Gallery, the very best of contemporary photography is shown for free, day and night, in Soho Photography Quarter.

Soho Photography Quarter
Siân Davey: The Garden Soho Photography Quarter
November 29th, 2023 - November 29th, 2024