Le jardin de Rosa Mir (Rosa Mir’s Garden)Jules Senis (1913-1983)

Used with permission of the photographer, Simon Turner

Used with permission of the photographer, Simon Turner

Used with permission of the photographer, Simon Turner

Used with permission of the photographer, Simon Turner

Used with permission of the photographer, JO FARB HERNÁNDEZ

Used with permission of the photographer, JO FARB HERNÁNDEZ

Status

Extant

Address

87 Grande Rue de la Croix-Rousse, Lyon, Rhône-Alpes, 69004, France

Built

1957-1977

Visiting Information

The site is now a Historical Monument, and can be visited during the summer months on Saturday afternoons.

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About the Artist/Site

Jules Senis, a mason, migrated from Spain to France in 1947. By 1951 he had settled with his family in the city of Lyon. When he developed cancer, he vowed that if he ever recovered, he would create a beautiful garden in honor of his mother, Rosa Mir Mercader.

Senis did recover. In 1957 he began working on a small garden in the center of an urban housing block. In order to find sufficient space for the plants, flowers, and decorative elements he wanted to arrange within the 400 square meter garden (around 4305 square feet), Senis constructed stone pillars and interconnected them at the top with arches. On top of the pillars and other vertical constructions, he added both oblong and cauldron-shaped stone baskets to hold plants.

Using shells and colored stones, Senis then decorated all of the constructions and baskets with abstract geometric patterns and stars. He also created a shrine that houses a small statue of the Virgin Mary on a rocky pedestal.

Jules Senis worked on his garden for twenty years, until 1977. When he died in 1983, friends formed an association to maintain the garden, to organize events, and to make public visits possible. In 1987, the City of Lyon assumed responsibility for the care and maintenance of the garden. The site is now a Historical Monument, and can be visited during the summer months on Saturday afternoons.

On Saturday, June 25, 2016, the Jardin de Rosa Mir was reopened after being closed for five years (2011-2016), as it had become unsafe for visitors and had to be renovated. Over a ten month period in 2015-2016 many of the works were restored and thousands of Mediterranean plants were added to the site.

~Henk van Es