Siân Davey's spiritual photography project explores the tranquil essence of the garden's ambiance
In the heart of Edinburgh, until the 30th of August, Stills is presenting Sian Davey's profound photography series, 'The Garden'. This captivating project is a reflection of Davey's beliefs in holding witness, stopping projection, and externalization as a means to change the world.
The series showcases nude figures in various relationships enjoying privacy amidst lavish plant life. The garden, once abandoned and overgrown, has been transformed into an immersive space filled with wildflowers, gourds, pumpkins, climbers, and more, thanks to Davey's collaboration with her son over three years. From early morning until dark, they worked tirelessly, researching soil compositions and biodiversity, and planting in line with moon cycles.
The garden's creation was a deeply therapeutic process for Davey. Having begun the series during lockdown, following a traumatic event in her life, the project served as a healing, nature-based endeavour that helped her work through her trauma. The community-driven process of 'The Garden' has been profoundly healing for Davey, fostering a sense of connection and collective growth.
The 'The Garden' project reveals Buddhist influences implicitly through its spiritual, ritualistic, and transformative aspects. Davey, who transitioned from being a psychotherapist to an artist inspired by a spiritual experience, describes the garden and her photography as expressions of human connection to nature and as part of a healing process where nature itself functions as a teacher.
By the end of the 'The Garden' project, Davey felt completely at peace. The series culminates in a poignant image of a pair of lovers peacefully entangled, symbolising the transformative power of human connection and the potential for growth and healing that lies within us all.
Sian Davey's 'The Garden' project promotes the idea that changes can be made by holding witness and stopping the projection and externalization. Davey states that by holding witness and stopping the projection and externalization, changes can be made, as shown through the 'The Garden' project. The series aims to show what happens with humanity when people are present and witness each other, fostering a sense of connection and collective growth.
With 'The Garden' on display at Stills, Edinburgh until the 30th of August, visitors have the opportunity to witness this beautiful and thought-provoking series, and to be inspired by Davey's journey of healing and transformation.
[1] Interview with Sian Davey, 2025 [2] Exhibition catalogue, 'The Garden', Stills, Edinburgh, 2025 [5] Article, 'The Healing Power of Art: Sian Davey's 'The Garden'', The Guardian, 2025
- Sian Davey's 'The Garden' project, showcased at Stills, Edinburgh until the 30th of August, delves into the intersection of lifestyle, relationships, and home-and-garden, as she transforms a once-abandoned garden into an immersive space, using the process as a means to heal and grow, both personally and communally.
- The 'The Garden' series, revealed in Davey's profound photography, fosters a conversation about fashion-and-beauty, as the nude figures in the images embody a raw, natural beauty, and about spiritual growth, as the garden's creation and its transformative symbols mirror the artist's own journey of healing.
