Create a Gargoyle Garden

St. Bernard of Chairvaux asked this famous question of gargoyles in 1125.

"In the cloister, before the eyes of the brothers while they read, what is that ridiculous monstrosity doing, an amazing kind of deformed beauty and yet a beautiful deformity? What is the meaning of these filthy apes, the fierce lions and monstrous creatures, half man and half beast.....? 

The ongoing history of gargoyles and the growing popularity of gargoyle garden statues is linked to the fact that the macabre continues to exert a powerful magnetism. We humans are attracted the monstrous, the lurid, images of the unknown and by strange beings that the mind believes (or hopes!) do not exist.

Today gargoyles are a very popular addition to our architecture and gardens though these are rarely true gargoyles (meaning rain spouts) but instead purely ornamental, designed to complement our garden design, to inspire and entertain us.

Artists continue to create new gargoyles, grotesques and chimeras for us to choose from. When purchasing a gargoyle for our garden you should consider the context in which the statue will be used and how you would like it to relate to the world around it.

Gargoyle garden statues create a sense of history and a mystical power in any garden setting. Classical styles of gargoyle statues will turn the garden clock back to a distant era, while the more modern and playful gargoyles will advance it.

 

Well chosen and thoughtfully placed gargoyle statues can transform our experience of the garden by creating a focus point, directing the eye of the onlooker just where the gardener wants it to go. Such statues can expand or shrink the perceived size of the garden space.

Gargoyle statues can be tied in to any style of home garden whether it be a traditional garden, a garden filled with native plants, a Japanese garden or  a garden influenced by the tropical island style. These ancient forms look wonderful in any setting and will take gardeners travelling: to Italy, France, Eygpt and beyond.

Gargoyles can create a mood for your garden that provokes thought, stimulates fantasy or promotes laughter. You can move them around  when inspiration strikes, changing the mood of your garden at will.

Life size garden gargoyles can help to form the bones of your garden, giving it a sense of shape as well as reassuring a sense of permanence throughout the seasons.

Gargoyles can enhance nature's beauty and strength and encourage the visitor to see what might otherwise be missed. Gargoyle statues have the ability to please our senses and awaken our emotions just the way paintings, that delight lovers of art, will do.

This type of garden ornament has enormous potential to transform your garden design, to welcome you and your visitors to your garden and make them feel at home.

For inspiration and great deals on life-size garden gargoyles see the range at Amazon.com