The Magic of Merging Community and Garden

Guests from left: Marian Weldin, Phil Wood, Margaret Britton, Mary Anne Carter, and Scott Robins

At last year's gala event, Garden board member Margaret Britton won an afternoon tour at the home and galleries of Dennis Evans and Nancy Mee, two acclaimed Seattle artists who have cultivated their art and garden in the Bryant-Assumption neighborhood for over 35 years. This summer, Margaret invited a dozen guests to share in the excursion and see how the Utopian Heights Studios has transformed its neighborhood.  What is unique about these artists is the magic they bring to the neighborhood – a joyful community sharing, an uplifting merging of art and garden.

Dennis and Nancy planted over forty stunning fuchsia Prunus cerasifera Thundercloud trees on the streets, creating a dramatic canopy through which one enters the Garden of Souls, a secluded garden showcasing Nancy Mee's glass sculptures. Her sculptures incorporate glass, forged steel, stone and photography – fusing and slumping glass to form elegant, mysterious shapes.

The garden was begun on September 11, 2001 and has evolved into a memorial of all souls lost that day, spreading out onto the sidewalks surrounding the two lots. There are North Dakota limestones, beautifully shaped by ice-age floes, sculptures – a seasonal dial showing when it's time to celebrate equinoxes, bronze plaques embedded into the sidewalk with messages ("The wise man changes his mind - the fool, never"), small benches, and a wooden shrine at which to leave notes - hundreds from passers by. So much magic when you look carefully.

Dennis Evans, far right, talking about his newest works (now at Woodside/Braseth gallery)

Dennis Evans newest works, "The Humbling of Indra," are currently being shown at the Woodside/Braseth Gallery through October 5th.

A guest relaxing in the front room...

Nancy Mee (at right) explaining the process involved in creating her sculptures

Several years ago, the artists gave a tour for the Chinese artisans who built Knowing the Spring Courtyard (see Hear the Song). To read more about Dennis and Nancy, check out the blog entry and photographs from the Intercontinental Gardener.