Festival 2019Talks & Teas

“Lambay, Lutyens & Jekyll” – A Talk by Dr. Matthew Jebb

Twin Trees Heywood Festival

Saturday 24th August

As part of our Tours, Talks & Teas package, Dr. Matthew Jebb will join us on August 24th, to deliver his talk, which is entitled “Lambay, Lutyens & Jekyll”.

He will discuss one of Lutyens’ other great works in Ireland, at Lambay Castle, which is considered one of the finest examples of his domestic architecture. He seamlessly added a new wing to the late 15th century, Old Fort section of the castle, between 1908-1910; which incidentally coincides with his work on Heywood Gardens (1906-1912), for Colonel Hutchinson Poe.

Dr Matthew Jebb is Director of the National Botanic Gardens. He read Botany at Oxford University and conducted his Ph.D. research on the Ant-Plants of New Guinea. He subsequently lived in Papua New Guinea for 6 years before moving to Trinity College Dublin in 1994 to work on the Flora of Thailand. He moved to the Gardens in 1996 as the Taxonomist and Keeper of the Herbarium. He has been Director since 2010. He has an interest in the history of science education, the taxonomy of south east Asian plants and the conservation and preservation of the native flora of Ireland.

“Lambay, Lutyens and Jekyll”

The story will revolve around the remarkable building project that the Baring’s envisaged along with Lutyens and how the collaboration of Jekyll shaped the garden design. A small, and long overlooked, handwritten comment by Lutyens on a plan that survived in Jekyll’s hands revealed a remarkable feature of the finished building. Jekyll had a profound influence upon the career and subsequent success that the young Lutyens experienced. Whilst her Garden designs were much altered for Lambay, their structure, based upon both her colour theories and combination patterns, reveal the significance of the ‘Arts and Crafts’ movement that she stimulated in planting and garden design.

Tours, Talks & Tea

12:00 – Meet at Heywood Gardens for Tour, with Lutyens’ great-grandniece, Amanda Pitcairn

13:00  – “Lutyens & Heywood In Context” Talk by David Averill, Lutyens Trust

14:15 – Afternoon Tea in Village

15:30  -“Lambay, Lutyens and Jekyll” Talk by Dr. Matthew Jebb, Botantic Gardens

16:30 – Finish

Please note, places are limited, and pre-booking is essential.