'I really wanted to think about ways in which walled gardens weren’t just placed in which the rich walled the poor out or the rich seized the land, but they could also be sites of safety or sanctuary or refuge' - Olivia Laing.
As part of The Wheeler Centre's 2024 Spring Fling program and in partnership with Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria, listen to an exclusive podcast interview with celebrated writer Olivia Laing, interviewed by Sophie Cunningham.
Olivia discusses her new book, The Garden Against Time: In Search of a Common Paradise, which moves between real and imagined gardens, exploring how new modes of living can and have been attempted amidst the flower beds. The result is a beautiful and exacting account of the abundant pleasures and possibilities of gardens: not as a place to hide from the world but as a site of encounter and discovery, bee-loud and pollen-laden.
Listen as you take a walk through the Royal Botanic Gardens, and experience first-hand the joy of wandering in nature.
Presented in partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria.
This conversation was recorded on Monday 22 July 2024 at The Wheeler Centre.
Featured music is 'Spacemoons' by Justnormal.