Connecticut garden antiques dealer Tracey Young brings renewed youth and function to objects of old
BY DONNA DORIAN / PHOTOS BY ANDRE BARANOWSKI
TRACEY YOUNG RETURNS FROM HER BUYING TRIPS TO Great Britain with 18th-, 19th-, and 20th-century garden antiques and architectural elements, impressive objects made from stone, terracotta, cast and wrought iron, glass and zinc. But she learned early on in her career as a garden antiques dealer that she had to show her clients how to use the extraordinary pieces she collects. As a result, her Woodbury, Connecticut shop, The Elemental Garden, which she named to reflect the nature of the materials she works with, is always a tribute to her imagination. Here, artifacts from the past find new life and function -- chimney pots are transformed into floral containers, stone sinks are refitted into drink coolers and potting tables, French bollard chains are hung as rain chains or draped like window valances. Everywhere, Tracey's manner of finding modern uses for old items has the brilliance of the obvious.
"Recycling antiques is very English in spirit, but the English tend to recycle objects from the past by reusing them in their original manner, while I promote their use in innovative ways," explains Tracey. "What draws me to an object is form and texture, but being a gardener allows me to look at how a piece can become an integral part of a garden. Each piece, like a garden, has a life of its own that is always adapting to nature."
* To learn more about Tracey's innovative ideas, click "next " below.
