Landscape Pleasures at the Parrish

[caption id="attachment_60643" align="alignnone" width="642"] Grey Gardens estate is among those featured on the Sunday Landscape Pleasures tour. Photo courtesy of the Corcoran Group.[/caption]

The Parrish Art Museum will present several opportunities for the public to learn about and experience gardens, landscape design and sustainable landscape architecture during a weekend devoted to the subject, June 9 through June 11.

The weekend begins with the Friday evening program, “Inter-Sections: The Architect in Conversation,” that will explore “The Aesthetics of Sustainability,” at 6 p.m. On June 10 and 11, the museum presents its annual two-day horticulture event, “Landscape Pleasures,” with a Saturday morning symposium featuring leaders in garden design and landscape architecture, as well as tours of private gardens in Water Mill and East Hampton, including the famous Grey Gardens.

“Inter-Sections: The Architect in Conversation” is a new Parrish series that brings together diverse voices concerned with building and designing for a vibrant and sustainable future.  At Friday’s program, Chris Reed, founder and director of landscape firm Stoss, and Alex Matthiessen, president of eco-political consulting firm, Blue Marble Project, will address how architects, landscape designers and community representatives can work together in a more holistic context to implement low-impact and regenerative projects.

Mr. Reed is currently a professor of Landscape Architecture and co-director of the Master of Landscape Architecture in Urban Design Program at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. Mr. Matthiessen is an environmentalist and campaign strategist who has lead large-scale environmental stewardship initiatives across sectors, including building New York’s leading clean water nonprofit, Riverkeeper, into an advocacy powerhouse. He developed and launched Green Energy Parks, a joint program of the National Park Service and Department of Energy, for which he received a White House Presidential Award.

The “Landscape Pleasures Symposium,” on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., will feature presentations by three prominent figures in garden and landscape design. Writer/garden designer Page Dickey will discuss her favorite gardens, landscape architect Christine Ten Eyck will talk about the inherent beauty of Texas and the Southwest and R. William Thomas will share insights into the art of gardening at Chanticleer, the 48-acre garden in Wayne, Pennsylvania, now in its 24th year.

On Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., ticket holders can participate in self-guided tours with exclusive access to private gardens in Water Mill and East Hampton including the estates of Arne and Milly Glimcher, Deborah Nevins, the Listowel Garden and Grey Gardens-the former home of the infamous Beale sisters immortalized in the documentary by the Maysels.

Tickets to “Landscape Pleasures” are $175 for museum members and $225 for non-members. These tickets include admission to the symposium, garden tours and Friday evening Inter-Sections program. The general public may attend only “Inter-Sections,” which is free for members and $12 for non-members.

The Parrish Art Museum is located at 279 Montauk Highway in Water Mill. For more information, please call (631) 283-2118 or visit parrishart.org.