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In July 2001, members of the
Society visited Harlow to look at the architecture
and planning of Sir Frederick Gibberd (see C20
Newsletter autumn 2001). The event led by Elain
Harwood and Lady Pat Gibberd. One of the highlights
of the day was the Harlow Water Gardens, designed
as the centrepiece of the town’s civic centre,
known as ‘The High’.
The Water Gardens, designed
by Gibberd with Gerry Perrin of Harlow Development
Corporation Architect’s Department in 1958/59,
were recently added to the Statutory List at Grade
II. They are also on English Heritage’s Register
of Parks and Gardens at Grade II*.
However, the gardens are at
risk of being swept away in a planned redevelopment
of the town centre, which will also involve the
loss of Gibberd’s Town Hall of 1958. The
tragedy of this loss is not only the destruction
of a beautiful and effective piece of design that
mixes planting, sculpture and architectural elements
to make the most of the sloping site, but also
that the gardens still work as a meeting place
for the town. Surely it should be possible to
remodel the area in a way that retains the Water
Gardens as the sort of focus for the local community
that they were designed to be.
The story behind the creation
of the gardens is one that brings together Frederick
Gibberd’s interest in landscape architecture
and his ideas about the importance of the contribution
of high quality sculpture to the special nature
of spaces. Gibberd began planning Harlow in 1946,
acting as masterplanner as well as the architect
of many individual buildings. He was unusual for
having planning as well as architectural qualifications,
in addition to a thorough understanding of landscape
architecture. His commitment to the value of landscape
in creating a sense of place is clear from the
layout of the town, with the houses carefully
grouped in neighbourhoods within the existing
landscape, enhanced by bold new planting. He was
advised by Sylvia Crowe on much of the detailed
landscape design and planting throughout Harlow.
The town is loosely grouped
around the civic centre on the highest part of
the site, with the tower of the Town Hall as the
visual focus. At its foot, and surrounded by Harlow’s
public buildings, the centrepiece of ‘The
High’ was to be the civic square, included
in Gibberd’s original masterplan for Harlow
but subsequently modified. "It was intended
to be the most splendid space in the town, the
equivalent of the Piazza San Marco, Venice"
wrote Gibberd in 1980. The Water Gardens were
placed to the south of this space.
As built between 1958 and 1963,
they are designed as a series of three parallel
terraces into which are set canals, fountains
and ponds. The terraces step down the hill towards
the South Lawn and the south side of the square
was left open to offer views across the gently
rolling countryside towards Epping, with the neighbourhoods
of houses just visible amongst the trees. There
is a strongly contrasting relationship between
the formality and architectural qualities of the
Water Gardens and the rural nature of the larger
landscape.
Two canals, each 250 yards long,
occupy the top terraces, with fountains and sculptures
in the lower one. These terraces are separated
by a retaining wall clad in a startling blue mosaic
and set with seven concrete abstracted ‘lions
head’ bas reliefs, disgorging water into
the lower canal from their mouths. These were
designed by William Mitchell and completed in
1963.
At the bottom of the slope, seven smaller pools
are cut into the third terrace, surrounded by
clipped hedges to create a series of interconnected
‘rooms’ offering some privacy where
visitors can sit. Gibberd made a close study of
French parterres on which the design was based.
Here the planting is more mixed and intimate to
reflect the contemplative quality of the spaces.
York stone flags, laid in random sizes, were chosen
for the paving to give a sense of quality and
scale.
The importance of public art
to Gibberd’s ideas for the town was developed
with the help of the Harlow Arts Trust, founded
in 1953. The inclusion of sculpture was felt to
be especially relevant in places were people meet,
such as the Water Gardens. Rodin’s Eve, first
sited on the Broadway, was moved to the upper
terrace in 1966. Bronze Cross by Henry Moore was
purchased from the artist and sited here in 1963.
Elisabeth Frink’s Boar was one of the earliest
works bought by the Trust, after Gibberd had seen
her very first show in 1954. The original version
was concrete, and placed at Bush Fair, but it
rapidly deteriorated and was replaced by the present
bronze. The bronze was first placed on a plinth
at the end of the upper terrace but, in order
to give it some protection from theft and vandalism,
it was set in the water of the lower canal, probably
at the same time as Hebe Comerford’s Bird
was installed there in 1985. Both now appear to
have been destined for this location and look
perfectly at home.
The loss of the Water Gardens
would be particularly disappointing for the people
of Harlow as well as for 20th century architecture
and town planning. It would also call into question
the effectiveness of the statutory protection
afforded by listing. We very much hope that the
planners of Harlow will reconsider the present
plans to ensure that the gardens are retained
to enhance the redevelopment of the town.
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