- Saatchi Gallery commissions multi-disciplinary artist Darcey Fleming for its annual garden at Chelsea Flower Show 2025
- Open to the public at RHS Chelsea Flower Show, 20 -24 May
- Three Coverings presents Fleming’s woven sculptures within a garden designed by Naomi Ferrett-Cohen
LONDON, UK – Saatchi Gallery presents its 2025 RHS Chelsea Flower Show garden, Three Coverings, with multi-disciplinary artist Darcey Fleming and garden designer Naomi Ferrett-Cohen.
Titled Three Coverings, Fleming’s larger-than-life, abstract sculptures occupy a garden evocative of the British countryside. The brightly-coloured woven works are made from discarded baling twine, donated by farmers living locally to Fleming in Oxfordshire and Berkshire. To create her sculptural forms, she embarks on a repetitive “building” practice – a self-developed weaving process which involves stretching and unravelling the twine to produce masses of material. Fleming says her practice represents “a need to continually make, to fill time.” The result is a visually and sensorially arresting experience.
Three Coverings include an immersive wall hanging, a chair sculpture, and a conical freestanding structure draped with a large woven sculptural form. A winding gravel path will guide visitors through the garden, with the main sculpture loosely referencing and evoking traditional celebrations connected to the land. In the same way that people would gather around Stonehenge or the maypole, Fleming’s sculptures seem to have a joyful, vibrant magnetism that draws people to them. The meeting of past, present and future is always an undercurrent in Fleming’s work. An important theme in Fleming’s practice is connection; the artist describes her works as ‘conversational tools’, accessible objects to be enjoyed.
Fleming has worked closely with garden designer Naomi Ferrett-Cohen to craft the setting that her sculptures inhabit. The organic nature of her medium is important to Fleming, as is her frugal and waste-free method of acquiring it. Everything must be locally sourced and naturally occurring within the UK. Thus, her sculptures stand in a sea of wild flowers and soft grasses. Hazel wood fencing and climbing ivy surround the garden.
Echoing the abundance of colour, texture, and volume of the material that Fleming employs, the garden abounds with repeated patterns of plants. The theme of duality also plays a significant role. Digitalis purpurea (common foxgloves) – like the reams of recycled plastic waste product that makes up Fleming’s twine – are pretty but poisonous. Lamium orvala (balm-leaved red deadnettle) carry pairs of dark, pointed, strongly-veined leaves with spikes of whorled pinkish-purple flowers. Here, it is used to represent nettles, notorious for its sting, and known to offer protection in some folkloric traditions by warding off evil. All of this points towards the power in Fleming’s work, of taking something toxic and turning it into something unexpected and ‘playful’.
The garden is supported by HSBC UK. This is Saatchi Gallery’s fifth year partaking in the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. It is an important part of the Gallery’s summer programme, offering emerging artists the opportunity to reach new audiences while exploring different materials and formats. Flowers play an important role in the Gallery’s 40th anniversary year, with its major exhibition FLOWERS - Flora in Contemporary Art & Culture presenting over 500 works and installations inspired by flora - from art, photography and sculpture to fashion, film, music and science.
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KEY DATES
RHS Chelsea Flower Show: 20 -24 May. Apply for press accreditation at rhs.org.uk/press/shows/accreditation
IMAGES
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SOCIAL MEDIA
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ABOUT DARCEY FLEMING
Darcey Fleming is an artist who works across sculpture, photography and performance. She is currently an artist in residence on the Lee Alexander McQueen Sarabande foundation, having been awarded a second year on the foundation. Fleming has exhibited across England, including at MK Gallery, and the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2023 where David Remfry stated that Fleming’s work ‘captured the true essence of the show’ (‘only connect’). She was recently shortlisted for the East London Art Prize and her works are in Tim Marlow’s (OBE) private collection. Fleming was recently commissioned to make the biggest artwork in the Soho House art collection, and has collaborated with Porsche and Soho House to make a sculpture for International Woman’s Day.
Her work has also been featured in numerous print publications including: W Magazine, Luncheon Magazine, Pirelli Calendar, Harper’s Bazaar, Vogue Scandinavia, Vogue Portugal, Plaster Magazine, Savills, The Times and The Telegraph, to name a few. She holds a BSc in Social Sciences from UCL and is currently completing an MSc at The London School of Economics.
ABOUT NAOMI FERRETT-COHEN
Naomi Ferrett-Cohen is a planting and garden designer. Having previously worked in the care sector supporting people with mental health problems and learning disabilities, Naomi understands the importance of horticulture for human wellbeing. After attaining her RHS Level II in Horticulture, Naomi went on to train with the London College of Garden Design, gaining a Garden Design Diploma in 2015 and a Planting Design Diploma in 2016, both with Distinction. In 2018, she won a Silver-Gilt medal at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show for the design of A Life Without Walls garden. She has also volunteered in the gardens at Parham House. Today, Naomi proudly heads up her very own planting and garden design practice, nestled at the foot of the beautiful South Downs in Sussex.
ABOUT HSBC UK
HSBC UK serves over 15 million active customers across the UK, supported by 23,900 colleagues. HSBC UK offers a complete range of retail banking and wealth management to personal and private banking customers, as well as commercial banking for small to medium businesses and large corporates. HSBC UK is a ring-fenced bank and wholly-owned subsidiary of HSBC Holdings plc.
HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 58 countries and territories. With assets of US$3,017bn at 31 December 2024, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations.
For more information visit https://www.hsbc.co.uk/
ABOUT SAATCHI GALLERY
Since 1985, Saatchi Gallery has provided an innovative platform for contemporary art. Exhibitions have presented works by largely unseen young artists, or by international artists whose work has been rarely or never exhibited in the UK. This approach has made the Gallery one of the most recognised names in contemporary art. Since moving to its current 70,000 square feet space in the Duke of York’s Headquarters in Chelsea, London, the Gallery has welcomed over 10 million visitors. The Gallery hosts over 5,000 schools visits annually and has over 6 million followers on social media. In 2019 Saatchi Gallery became a charity, beginning a new chapter in its history.
For more information visit www.saatchigallery.com
Saatchi Gallery, Duke of York's HQ, King's Rd, Chelsea, London SW3 4RY
Saatchi Gallery Registered Charity No. 1182328
ABOUT ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY (RHS)
Since our formation in 1804, the RHS has grown into the UK’s leading gardening charity, touching the lives of millions of people. Perhaps the secret to our longevity is that we’ve never stood still. In the last decade alone we’ve taken on the largest hands-on project the RHS has ever tackled by opening the new RHS Garden Bridgewater in Salford, Greater Manchester, and invested in the science that underpins all our work by building RHS Hilltop – The Home of Gardening Science.
We have committed to being net positive for nature and people by 2030. We are also committed to being truly inclusive and to reflect all the communities of the UK.
Across our five RHS gardens we welcome more than three million visitors each year to enjoy over 34,000 different cultivated plants. Events such as the world famous RHS Chelsea Flower Show, other national shows, our schools and community work, and partnerships such as Britain in Bloom, all spread the shared joy of gardening to wide-reaching audiences.
Throughout it all we’ve held true to our charitable core – to encourage and improve the science, art and practice of horticulture – to share the love of gardening and the positive benefits it brings.
For more information visit www.rhs.org.uk
