Art inspired by nature: h.Art 2026 at Hergest Croft Gardens

This September, Hergest Croft Gardens will take part in h.Art, Herefordshire’s much-loved annual celebration of local creativity.

From Saturday 5 to Sunday 13 September 2026, artists and makers across Herefordshire and the neighbouring borders will welcome visitors into studios, galleries and special exhibition spaces. Here at Hergest, the gardens will provide a particularly fitting setting for work shaped by landscape, nature and close observation.

Our h.Art exhibition brings together current artist in residence Miranda Whitten-Walker, former artist in residence Chris Williams and fine art photographer Rebecca Reynolds. They will be joined by local enamel artist Ailsa Bufton, adding another distinctive medium to this varied celebration of art and place.

Miranda Whitten-Walker

Kington-based artist and printmaker Miranda Whitten-Walker began her 12-month residency at Hergest Croft Gardens in spring 2026. Throughout the changing seasons, she has been exploring the gardens’ remarkable plants, champion trees, wildlife and wider landscape.

Miranda is best known for her contemporary linocut prints, drypoint etchings, paintings and mixed-media drawings. Her work often combines close natural observation with varying degrees of abstraction, revealing familiar landscapes from unexpected perspectives.

Before becoming a full-time artist, Miranda worked as a biologist specialising in insects. That scientific background continues to inform the detail and curiosity found throughout her work. She was also the recipient of the 2025 h.Art Emerging Artist Bursary Award.

Visitors to Hergest may already have encountered pieces created during her residency, including work inspired by the pond and slate garden, the celebrated wrought-iron Wembley Gate and views towards Hergest Ridge. Her h.Art display offers an opportunity to see how these encounters with the gardens have developed through print, drawing and colour.

Chris Williams

We are delighted to welcome Chris Williams back to Hergest following her residency here from 2024 to 2025.

Originally from North Wales and now based in Shropshire, Chris is primarily a landscape painter. She works through direct observation, often drawing or producing oil studies outside before developing her ideas further in the studio.

Natural forms, changing light, weather and the daily and seasonal rhythms of the landscape are recurring themes within her work. During her time at Hergest, Chris responded closely to the atmosphere of the gardens, capturing moments that might otherwise pass unnoticed: a shift in the light, the structure of a tree or the particular character of a familiar view.

Her return for h.Art creates a wonderful connection between past and present residencies, demonstrating how an artist’s relationship with Hergest can continue long after the formal residency has ended.

Rebecca Reynolds

Rebecca Reynolds is a fine art photographer, writer and book artist whose work reflects a deep love of nature, wild spaces and the rhythms of the landscape.

Through her photography, Rebecca draws attention to the beauty and fragility of the habitats and small ecosystems that surround us. Her thoughtful images encourage us to look more closely and consider our relationship with the natural world.

Rebecca has exhibited work inspired by Hergest Ridge and has led wildlife and astrophotography walks for the Kington Walking Festival. She will become Hergest Croft Gardens’ artist in residence in 2027, making this year’s h.Art exhibition an early opportunity to discover her work before that residency begins.

With Miranda representing the garden’s present residency, Chris its recent past and Rebecca its future, the exhibition reveals an evolving creative conversation with Hergest.

Ailsa Bufton

Completing the exhibition is local enamel artist Ailsa Bufton.

Enamelling uses intense heat to fuse powdered glass to metal, producing surfaces with a richness and luminosity that make each finished piece distinctive. Ailsa’s work brings the qualities of colour, craftsmanship and transformation to the exhibition, complementing the printmaking, painting and photography on display.

Her inclusion also reflects the breadth of creative practice found across our local area and at h.Art, where fine art and contemporary craft sit naturally alongside one another.

Experience art in the landscape

Hergest Croft Gardens has inspired generations of artists, gardeners and visitors. Beneath Hergest Ridge, with views towards the Black Mountains, its 70 acres contain more than 5,000 rare trees and plants, over 130 Champion Trees and National Collections of maples, birches and zelkovas.

During h.Art, visitors can explore the exhibition before stepping outside to experience the colours, textures and views that have inspired much of the work. It is a chance to slow down, look afresh at the landscape and discover four individual creative responses to nature and place.

Whether you are a keen collector, interested in artistic processes or simply looking for an inspiring day out, we look forward to welcoming you.

h.Art 2026

Saturday 5–Sunday 13 September 2026

Hergest Croft Gardens,

Ridgebourne Road,

Kington,

Herefordshire

HR5 3EGh.

Art venue number: 60

Please check the Hergest Croft Gardens website before travelling for current opening times, admission information and any accompanying events.