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Potagers remarquables de Versailles à Villandry by Eric HASKELL – Château de Bénouville
Princely Potagers: French Kitchen Gardens from Versailles to Villandry
The history and aesthetics of the kitchen garden in France are the topic of our inquiry which begins with a discussion of the Sun King’s celebrated potager at Versailles. This will set the stage for our exploration of other masterpieces in this genre including the kitchen gardens at Saint Jean de Beauregard, near Paris, and of Villandry, the jewel in the crown of Loire Valley landscapes.
Eric Haskell
Eric Haskell is a professor in French studies at the Scripps College, Claremont University, California, where he is also director of the Clark Humanities Museum. He also studied history of art and architecture within the context of the higher education programme offered by the UCI and the École du Louvre in Paris. Dr Haskell’s lectures focus on the study of the political and social traditions that have shaped France. He has published around thirty works in English and French on a range of subjects, ranging from 19th century poetry to the history of gardens. In the specific field of the history of gardens and the aesthetics of landscape, Dr Haskell has organised over a dozen exhibitions.
Further reading :
Le potager du roi, La Martinière, 2010
Le potager du roi – The king’s vegetable garden, Actes Sud, 2003
Les Jardins de Brécy: Le Paradis Retrouvé, Erik Haskell, Editions du Huitième Jour, 2007
Le Nôtre’s Gardens, Eric Haskell, RAM Publications, 1999