THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Meet Stefano
Stefano works with us at Modern Mint, designing gardens with Darren (who, incidentally, also does garden talks) and turning his hand to just about anything the business needs in terms of logos, prints, signs and artwork.
He joined us at the end of 2014 and fit in magnificently, his positivity and quick thinking an exciting asset to a new company like ours. He also makes an incredible tiramisu (he is Italian, after all) and a fantastic pizza dough – after too many strong espressos we often float around the idea that we should open a Modern Mint pizzeria too…. they really are that good!
To celebrate Stefano and the skills he brings to Modern Mint we decided to set him a challenge – to illustrate 99 Flowers in 99 days.
Which flowers and what style is completely up to him – what we wanted to see was a body of work created by an artisan, that when viewed together turned out to have extraordinary weight and depth. Is that a lot to put on someone, do you think? It could possibly be, but our man Stefano took up the challenge and so, we invite you to please take a little time to view and enjoy the 99 Flowers project by Stefano of Modern Mint.
For more of these amazing drawings, and to see how the style evolves throughout the 99 days, visit 99 Flowers by Stefano on Pinterest and Facebook.
Monty Don British Gardens Episode 4
I hadn’t seen the new Monty Don series ‘Monty Don’s British Gardens’ but I was sent a message one evening to say stick it on – episode 4 especially! On the episode were three gardens I make and clip the topiary in… the photo above is my quizzical boxwood emu… which looks ridiculous out of context of the wider topiary garden it sits in… but hey! Showcases what you can do with boxwood, when given enough time to let it grow! But also on the episode were Waltham Place, one of my favourite gardens and a place I teach topiary …
Topiary Art In Hong Kong, The Henderson
Here are a couple of photos of the topiary work I have been doing in Hong Kong for the Art Garden at the bottom of the brand new skyscraper, The Henderson. The building has been designed by Zaha Hadid Architects and this November 2024 the garden at the base of the structure will be planted up, with lots of topiary originally designed by Gillespies Landscape Architects, grown by Tarzan Nursery in China, and then clipped and refined into shape by…. me. Will update with photos from The Henderson Art Garden when all is completed and the garden is opened, but …
EBTS Boxwood Growers Forum
Through the European Boxwood and Topiary Society I worked with Chris Poole and Sue Mesher, members of the EBTS board, and we set up a Boxwood Growers Forum. This was to discuss how to make sure this wonderful topiary plant stays in the public conscioussness – we know many growers, suppliers and distributors have stopped selling it as the cost of replacing boxwood that has blight, or is nibbled by the boxwood caterpillar, makes it unviable to offer to clients and gardeners. But Boxwood is a phoenix plant, and there are ways to deal with the problems associated with Buxus. …