Landscape architect Alexander Grivko is the author of the unique park Les Jardins d’Étretat in the French city of Etretat. This project is not only the main tourist attraction of the region, but also the winner of the prestigious European Garden Award 2019 in the nomination “The best restoration of the historical garden”

The park is divided into thematic zones. This part is called “Emotions and the bottom of the ocean”. The relief in the form of scallop shells was created in honor of the oyster farm known in Etretat since the XVIII century. Evergreen boxwood (Buxus sempervirens) and Japanese enkianthus (Enkianthus japonicas) were used.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

The park in the French city of Etretat on the English Channel coast opened in May 2017 and has already received hundreds of thousands of visitors, becoming the most visited attraction of these places. My head is spinning from the number of ideas implemented here! And it’s not just about huge rubber heads dozing on green pillows.

By the way, they have an amazing property — you pass, turn around and see that the expression on the frozen face has changed. You try again — and here it is again. Futuristic hedges-whirlpools and clipped trees-rocks create an alluring perspective. In memory of Claude Monet, who loved to paint local sunsets, the artist’s sculpture offers a look at the landscape through the eyes of the famous Impressionist.

The key in the trunk is a real music box implanted in a tree. The work was made by a group of London artists Grey World and is called “Clockwork Forest”.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

“The park is addictive. I myself can wander around it for hours and see something new every time. Although there are those who come to us with one goal — to dig up orchids, they even bring special spoons with them,” laughs Alexander Grivko, co—owner and creator of the park. The art director of the landscape company IL Nature moved to France a few years ago.

Samuel Salcedo’s rubber sculptures from the Raindrops series reflect different human emotions. The diameter of each head is 1.2 meters.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

“We have been eyeing this dacha in Etretat for a long time and rushed over as soon as we learned about its sale,” he says. — With the exception of a few pines, beeches and a maple grove, the site was practically bare, but its unique location and relief had great potential.

The stones for the retaining walls were dug out of the ground during landscaping. In the background is Viktor Shostalo’s installation “The Queue for the last tree”.

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Frank Schmitt, Dmitry Livshits

The natural landscape of Etretat is under UNESCO protection, so it was necessary to coordinate not only the repair of the facade, but also every tree. However, as soon as the authorities found out that the park would be open to the public and would become a venue for annual land art festivals, the project was given the green light.”

The trunk of an old beech tree is embraced by a sculpture from Viktor Shostalo’s project “The queue for the last tree”. The project was invented in 2005 and has been traveling the world ever since.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

Speaking of orchids. The villa was built in 1905, at the same time it was named “Roksolana” — in honor of the star role of the French actress Madame Thibaut, the first hostess of the house. Preparing for the role, she grew rare varieties of orchids symbolizing concubines in Sultan Suleiman’s harem, where each “concubine flower” expressed a special beauty and character.

Installation by Sergey Katran “Until the word disappears”. The objects repeat the shape of the sound wave that occurs when the word “Art” is pronounced in different languages of the world.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

“The creation of a two—hectare park took a record time — less than a year and a half,” Alexander continues. — We have restored all the varieties of orchids that Madame Thibault grew.

The garden “Element” symbolizes the movement of the ocean, the tide and the ebb. Waves and whirlpools are formed from the narrow-leaved phyllyrea (Phillyrea angustifolia).

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

And suddenly faced with the problem of selecting plants to create large-scale sculptural forms in the part of the park that faces the ocean. Although the temperature in Normandy rarely drops below zero, the sea salt carried by the ocean destroys everything except the varieties we have selected.”

The sculptural furniture made of petrified oak is the work of the German designer Thomas Roesler.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

Etretat Gardens are futuristic living sculptures whose streamlined forms are borrowed from nature itself. According to the idea of the project, the beauty of the entire coast of Etretat, its mysterious underwater world, stone arches protruding from the water, the famous alabaster coast are sung on one site. Thematic zones move into one another.

The green pyramids and semi-arches are formed from berry yew (Taxus baccata) and are made in the form of characteristic stone cliffs, which are famous for the alabaster coast of the Pas De Caux.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

Plants turn into rocks and merge with the shoreline of the horizon, and the collection of modern art that complements the idea of the garden opens up new meanings and ways of perceiving the surrounding world. Alexander Grivko has created a fantastic world, a wonderland where no one will find it strange that if you turn a key in a tree, music will play. www.il-nature.com, www.etretatgarden.fr

The braided figure of Claude Monet is the work of Victor Shostalo. It was from this point that the famous artist painted “Sunset at Etretat”. The canvas “Rocks in Etretat”, also created by Claude Monet in these places, is in the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts.

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FRANK SCHMITT, DMITRY LIVSHITS

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