Vita and Virginia. That was the focus of pre-conference events on #DallowayDay, the day before the start of the 28th Annual International Conference on Virginia Woolf.
About 58 Woolf fans boarded a bus at the University of Kent and headed toward two former homes of Vita Sackville-West, where Woolf visited her friend and lover.
We spent the day touring Knole, the ancestral home of the Sackvilles and Sissinghurst Castle Gardens, where Vita and Harold Nicolson created a vast world-renowned garden. The National Trust owns and manages both.
Here are some photos from the beautiful, warm, sun-filled day.
Conference attendees arrive at Knole, originally built as an archbishop’s palace but given to the Sackville family in 1603.
Looking through the Knole gate
View from the rooftop of Knole.
Another rooftop view
The orangerie where the Sackvilles once grew oranges and lemons and later stored their cast-offs. It is being refurbished.
On the Knole tour
View of Sissinghurst from the tower after climbing its 78 steps.
Looking back through the archway as we enter Sissinghurst.
The tower where Vita’s personal study is located. It is filled with the room’s original books and furnishings. A portrait of Virgina sits on the desk.
The white garden, a spot where Vita and Harold liked to sit at night over dinner, with the brightness of the flowers helping to illuminate the night.
Closeup in the white garden
Rooftop view of Sissinghurst Gardens
An unusual black flower in the garden
Pink roses climbing up a sun-washed wall
This unusual flower near the archway prompted visitors to stop to take a photo.
Flowers growing up and around a wall structure.
Alice Lowe
Catherine
Kaylee Baucom
Paula Maggio
Stefano Rozzoni
seanmcphail
suzannebellamy1
veronikakra
Vara Neverow
William Patrick Wend
Zoe Wolstenholme
[…] A day dedicated to Vita and Virginia before #woolf2018 — in pictures […]
Gorgeous! Very jealous. Have been to Sissinghurst, but not Knole. And thanks for bringing us this great weather…