A Paradise Garden: the Meaning of Medieval Flowers in Art

Have you noticed how many medieval paintings are set in the full greenery of May? The artistic language of plants evolved over the centuries to steer our imaginations toward Paradise, a perennial early summer garden where all the flowers and all the fruits emerge at the same time.

In this eternal garden, each flower is a symbol borne of colour, number or behaviour that tells us something different.

But what do they mean? In this talk with Dr Jonathan Foyle explore medieval paintings, tapestry, manuscripts and sculpture to re-learn a lost visual language.Dr Jonathan Foyle is best known for television broadcasts including BBC2's Climbing Great Buildings and BBC4's Henry VIII: Patron or Plunderer? Having studied Architecture at Canterbury and History of Art at the Courtauld Institute, he became Curator of Historic Buildings at Hampton Court and Kew Palace.

He is now a lecturer in Architectural History and Conservation at the University of Bath.