About

For as long as I can remember, I have loved gardens and flowers. As a young child, I used to sit in a bed of Lily of the Valley under a large rhododendron, collecting the beautifully fragrant flowers. Obviously my mother did not know they were poisonous! I worked in nurseries as a teenager and made beautiful displays for retail. Then opening my own nursery, I created and designed display gardens showcasing plants and flowers so my customers could see how they grew.  I love the aesthetics of plants, the colors and textures of foliage and combinations of flowers. I loved the way a garden would uplift people and make them happy.

My career has spanned over 40 years and spread from Cape Cod, MA to Clearwater, FL The last 15 years I've had the opportunity to learn and use tropical plants in the landscape. One of my greatest joys is seeing the reaction of others to a beautiful garden and overflowing container or a beautiful specimen plant in the landscape. It is funny because I never really thought of myself as an artist until very recently. Instead of a brush I have a trowel, instead of paint I have flowers, and instead of a canvas I have the soil. I have produced many “works of art” but they are mostly living in my clients’ yards. I started to feel a little disappointed when I would have to leave these gardens wishing I could somehow carry that artistic expression along with me.

I suddenly had a great idea… I could collaborate with an artist who could take the beauty of a garden or container and bring it to life on paper or canvas in a way that a photo could not. It just so happens that I know an artist quite well, my youngest daughter Katrina Crocker. She has been creating art since she could hold a marker and has progressed through watercolor, acrylics, pastels, oils, every media possible. She is a successful graphic designer with her business Do Good Creative but has been longing to get back to creating art.

As a gift, she painted one of my beautiful gardens and gave it to me. I was so happy I can now enjoy this garden every day on my bedroom wall. Thus the collaboration was created: I create the garden and she creates the art- the perfect melding of aesthetics. We also wanted to provide a practical and educational aspect to this project. With each piece of art we provide instructions, plans and how-tos to create your own gardening creations. We want to inspire you to create too.

We would like to welcome you to ‘Art of the Gardener’- truly a union of nature and art. We hope you love our creations.

 

Victoria & Katrina Crocker