Cruise line, Viking Cruises will be showcasing a garden at the 2019 RHS Chelsea Flower Show, reflecting the company’s artistic brand.

The Art of Viking

The theme of the garden, which visitors will have the chance to view at the spring event, is the ‘Art of Viking’. It will reflex the brand’s Nordic heritage and aims to give visitors an ‘immersive and culturally enriching’ experience.

The RHS Chelsea Flower Show will be taking place between 21st and 25th May 2019.

The Nordic garden

Viking is working with RHS gold-medallist Paul Hervey-Brookes, the Gloucestershire-based garden designer, who has a long-standing partnership with the cruise line. 

The Art of Viking garden - a multi-layered wetland habitat – will be reminiscent of a water meadow, with multi-stem river birches and winding streams running through the space. Water is a key element of the design and a signature feature of all Viking’s RHS gardens.

Brookes has taken inspiration for the design, textures, plants and colour palette of the 2019 garden from artwork on board Viking’s newest ocean ship, Viking Orion, including a painting by Norwegian impressionist Jakob Weidemann, ‘Impressions on Nature’, and ceramic plates by Anette Krogstad.  

The centrepiece of the garden will be a sculpture created by Brookes especially for Viking, which exposes the landscape beyond. It will reflect the sense of curiosity and discovery shared by Viking’s guests as well as the fact that travel broadens horizons.  

More about the show

Wendy Atkin-Smith, managing director of Viking, who has worked closely with Paul on the design of the 2019 garden, said: “We chose art as the main theme of our garden for 2019 as it weaves together two aspects of Viking’s heritage – a sense of discovery through travel and art and an appreciation for nature which is deeply engrained in Scandinavian culture.”

Paul Hervey-Brookes said: “I was overwhelmed by the incredible art collection on board Viking’s ocean ships, so it was not hard to find inspiration for the 2019 garden. The Art of Viking garden offers the opportunity to take a space everyone can relate to and provide inspiration beyond the obvious or normal layout of a garden.”

Group tickets are sold as packages with other RHS shows. GTOs can call 0844 412 4650 or email groups@seetickets.com for more details.

For more information about the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, visit www.rhs.org.uk/shows-events/rhs-chelsea-flower-show and for more of Viking Cruises, visit www.vikingcruises.co.uk