The Conservatory : A Celebration of Architecture, Nature, and Light

Elegant and magnificent, conservatories reveal fascinating social, cultural, botanical, and engineering advances as they have evolved across history. First appearing in the eighteenth century as simple structures designed to protect fruit trees and other delicate plants from harsh European winters, conservatories became grand glass houses that spread across the European continent, to the Americas, and ultimately around the world. Through evocative archival and contemporary photographs, drawings of landmark structures, and graceful, accessible text, The Conservatory celebrates the patrons and designers who advanced the technology and architectural majesty of these light-filled structures. The importance of conservatories continues to grow with efforts to conserve phenomenal plants and their environments.

2021 GardenComm Media Awards Gold Medal Winner, Publishing category

“Alan Stein and Nancy Virts knock it out of the park with this beautifully designed history of conservatory spaces.... This is the perfect gift for the architect, gardener, historian, or photographer in your life." —Washington Gardener

Elegant and magnificent, conservatories reveal fascinating social, cultural, botanical, and engineering advances as they have evolved across history. First appearing in the eighteenth century as simple structures designed to protect fruit trees and other delicate plants from harsh European winters, conservatories became grand glass houses that spread across the European continent to the Americas and, ultimately, around the world.

In The Conservatory, husband and wife Alan Stein and Nancy Virts, founders of design firm Tanglewood Conservatories, examine the development of conservatories “from their humble roots to their global expansion as awe-inspiring glass palaces to the avant-garde structures crafted by top architects today.” (Architectural Digest) More than 50 beautifully documented locations include:

• Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London
• Schönbrunn Palace, Vienna
• Palacio de Cristal, Madrid
• The New York Botanical Garden, New York
• The Biltmore Estate, Asheville
• Jardin des Plantes, Paris
• Gardens by the Bay, Singapore
• Allan Gardens Conservatory, Toronto
• Kyoto Botanical Gardens, Kyoto

Through stunning contemporary and archival photographs, evocative drawings of landmark structures, and graceful, accessible text, The Conservatory celebrates the patrons and designers who advanced the technology and architectural majesty of these light-filled structures. A resplendent coffee table book perfect for gift-giving and display, this volume captures the importance of conservatories as modern efforts increase to conserve phenomenal plants and their environments.