Wendy’s Garden is strewn with artefacts – some formal creations, others informal creations, and yet others – simply finds.
At the entrance, ‘Head’ – a bronze statue of a female head by Australian sculptor Joel Elenberg – waits silently to greet visitors. Nearby, sitting mutely, is a second sculpture by visiting American sculptor, Robert DuBourg, carved using a block of white Carrara marble remaining in Joel’s studio.
Two sets of steps looping on either side of the Moreton Bay fig lead down into the Secret Garden. At the higher steps, an ornate, antique Italianate fountain with a chubby, winged Cupid sitting on three swans greets visitors. The patinated metal fountain came from the rambling Paddington garden of the late Margaret Olley, a much-loved Australian artist. Water sprays from both the frog and tortoise perched on the Cupid’s plump knees, also the shell in his hand.
You might also see an old-time child’s tricycle and a scooter, a discarded washbasin, a bird-bath or more cherubs, a railway switch lever, a musical figurine trio, an ancient wheelbarrow, a pair of embracing lovers. You certainly will see a welcoming choice of seats or benches and tables on which to pause for your picnic – or maybe some reading – or contemplation – and shelter, if you like, by an umbrella or an awning. Keep exploring and see what else is there.
