Somerleyton Hall‘s gardens are the kind of place that rewards patience and a slow pace. Spread across twelve acres of Suffolk countryside, they offer an almost endless succession of compositions for the photographer willing to wander without a fixed agenda.
It was on exactly that kind of wander that I found this.
Tucked into the rose garden, a bronze Hermes stands poised on one foot in the classic Giambologna pose, winged helmet raised, caught forever in the moment before flight. The verdigris patina that has built up over the years has transformed the surface into a palette of blue-greens and earthy browns that sits beautifully against the lush surrounding planting. In good light, the texture is extraordinary.
The mythology felt apt. Hermes, messenger of the gods, deliverer of news between the divine and mortal worlds, at home amongst the roses. If he is carrying anything on this particular errand, a rose garden in Suffolk seems a very fine place to deliver it.
The Cedar of Lebanon that dominates the skyline behind him is the same tree that frames the wicker elephant on the lawn nearby, and it anchors this composition just as effectively. Shooting with the Leica Q2, I worked from a low angle to let the bronze figure rise against the canopy, the cloudy spring sky providing the kind of soft, diffused light that flatters patinated metal beautifully.
Sometimes a location simply hands you a photograph. Somerleyton did that twice in one afternoon.