Siân Davey in conversation with Jennifer Higgie

"Everyone has a place in our garden. I am the garden. Those who enter are the garden. Without distinction, without separation."
Beginning in 2020, the British photographer Siân Davey transformed her abandoned garden into a vibrant space, filled with wildflowers, birdsong and people.
Over three summers and in collaboration with her son Luke, Davey cultivated a botanical space rooted in love, joy and togetherness. When the flowers bloomed, they called in the community and photographed them. The resulting portraits became an expression of yearning, defiance, joy and interconnectedness.
To celebrate the V&A's recent acquisition of works by Siân Davey, and on the occasion of her new publication 'The Garden' (Trolley Books, April 2024), join us for a discussion about Davey's extensive career and stories behind the production of The Garden.

Siân Davey is a photographer based in Britain. Before pursuing photography, she was employed as a psychotherapist for 15 years. This educated perspective on family, friendship, community and relationships has defined her photographic practice. In addition to her degrees in social work and psychotherapy, she holds an MA and MFA in Photography from Plymouth University.

Jennifer Higgie is an Australian writer who lives in London. Previously the editor of Frieze magazine, and the presenter of Bow Down, a podcast about women in art history. She is the author and illustrator of several books including 'The Artist’s Joke', 'Bedlam', 'The Mirror & The Palette: Rebellion, Revolution & Resistance, 500 Years of Women's Self Portraits', and most recently 'The Other Side: Women, Art and the Spirit World'.

Part of the V&A Parasol Foundation Women in Photography Project.