Une chronique de la ville de Bangalore en Inde, et de son plus ancien jardin – le jardin botanique de Lalbagh – autour duquel l'auteur, Suresh Jayaram, a grandi.
Illustrated with photographic accounts, images from family albums, and archival documents lost from public memory, the book tells the story of a city that has borne witness to royal visionaries—from the prowess of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan to the modernist agendas of the Mysore State, colonial influences, orchestrations of botanical transactions, and the impacts of urbanism. Tracing these shifts with Lalbagh as its protagonist, the book touches upon the significance of the garden in its historical and contemporary context, and sheds light on the often unseen gardener communities that tend to the Bangalore we identify with today. With research that stems from the author's role as an artist, art historian, curator, and garden enthusiast, the book grounds itself in local histories and presents. Suresh locates himself within the botanical paradise that is Lalbagh and draws our attention to a garden and urban cosmos that holds within its bounds so much that today's city-dwellers might easily pass over.
Suresh Jayaram (né en 1965) est artiste, historien de l'art, administrateur artistique et commissaire d'exposition indien. Il est également le directeur fondateur de
1Shanthiroad Studio/Gallery, une organisation artistique à but non lucratif basée à Bangalore. Il a enseigné l'histoire de l'art au Karnataka Chitrakala Parishat de Bangalore, dont il a été le doyen entre 2005 et 2007.
