Opening times
Saturday 1 February - Sunday 16 February, daily, 10am - 4pm
Monday 24 February - Friday 28 March, weekdays, 10am - 4pm.
Free Admission
Over the past five decades, Lord and Lady Heseltine have transformed the substantial grounds of Thenford House near Middleton Cheney into one of the finest modern gardens in England. The arboretum and gardens now contain over 3,500 varieties of trees and shrubs - and a magnificent snowdrop collection that has been awarded National Plant Collection status in recognition of the 15 species and 885 cultivars it contains.
Following a chance encounter with Lord Heseltine in the summer of 2023, Oxford-based photographer Nicholas Posner was asked to create a detailed photographic record of every tree and shrub in the gardens. Since then, he has spent more than 100 hours photographing the gardens across all the seasons and continues to work on what he describes as the ‘greatest photographic project of my life’. For this exhibition, Nicholas has selected 84 exceptional photographs, revealing the snowdrop collection and gardens in all their diversity and beauty.
Nicholas Posner is a photographer and former GP. He started taking photographs as a teenager and is best known for his portraits of political leaders and celebrities, many of which are in the collection of the National Portrait Gallery.
“Having been used to photographing people, snowdrops were a fresh challenge. Lord Heseltine was very clear on what was required - close-up and very detailed shots of each variety to show the subtle differences in shapes and markings. This included the inside of the flower and I had to devise a way to position the camera and lighting to capture this.”
This exhibition coincides with the annual snowdrop walks that take place at Thenford Arboretum and Gardens. Why not visit both the gardens and our exhibition in one day to get the full snowdrop experience? Click the link below to go to the Thenford website and book your snowdrop walk!
