Celebrate and mingle at the enchanting Garden Party, hosted by the renowned Cecil Beaton!
Party of a Lifetime: Cecil Beaton's Extravagant Garden Bash
Step back in time to 1937, when society photographer Cecil Beaton (1904-1980) threw the wildest party of his life. With 300 guests decked out in masks and costumes, his fête champêtre garden party at his country home in Cranborne Chase, Wiltshire, was a surrealist dream. Inspired by the Surrealists, birdcages swung from topiary, roses filled every room, and garlands of paper flowers adorned the house and garden. Beaton himself turned up in a pink corduroy frock coat, studded with chiffon roses, tufted leaves, and broken eggshells. Even Salvador Dalí contributed to the ensemble by sourcing him a rabbit mask!
Beyond his photographic prowess, Beaton was a charismatic figure, boasting an address book bursting with Bright Young Things. Fresh out of Cambridge and without a degree, Beaton was soon gracing the pages of Vogue on both sides of the Atlantic and would soon join the ranks as the official court photographer to the Royal Family.
This compact yet illuminating exhibition at the Garden Museum transports us into his personal world, as if we've stepped right into one of his photographs. From the rosy-hued interior to the floral-skirted display cabinets, this exhibition radiates Beaton's theatrical and chintzy camp spirit. With tinfoil embellishing photographic displays and paper flowers scattered everywhere, the experience is nothing short of over-the-top.
Although the exhibition has its turns, as when it presents Beaton's war photographs in evacuees' suitcases, complete with shiny cellophane and everlasting lilies, we cannot deny that Beaton had his fair share of mishaps. As the Second World War loomed, he was dismissed from American Vogue for antisemitism. Yet, he managed to avoid professional drowning when he was assigned a floral photoshoot with Queen Elizabeth (later Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother).
For a comprehensive retrospective of Beaton's photographs, head to the National Portrait Gallery's "Cecil Beaton's Fashionable World" set for this autumn. Instead, the Garden Museum's exhibition offers a more intimate glimpse at Beaton, whose love for flowers fueled his creativity. Organized loosely by chronology, we are given an exclusive look into his garden diaries, correspondence, and still-life paintings of nasturtiums and roses. Furthermore, the showcase highlights sketches of floral costumes for the ballets and musicals Beaton designed, such as My Fair Lady [5].
Be sure to check out "Cecil Beaton's Garden Party," open now until September 21; admission is £15.
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Charlotte MullinsCharlotte Mullins is an art critic, writer, and broadcaster. Her upcoming book, The Art Isles: A 15,000 year story of art in the British Isles, will be published by Yale University Press in October 2025.
In the realm of social media, sharing updates about Cecil Beaton's extravagant garden party would undoubtedly trend, as celebrities and enthusiasts of pop-culture flock to discuss the surrealist entertainment of theevent, alongside the day's current news.
Among the posts showcasing Beaton's theatrical and chintzy camp spirit at the Garden Museum exhibition, there would likely be conversations about the worn copies of Vogue and the artifacts once owned by the beloved socialite, providing a glimpse into the vivid world of 1930s entertainment and pop-culture.
