Nights of a Thousand Candles – Love of Art and Light
Eddie and I wander through Brookgreen Gardens, and time stands still. A sense of mystic wonder fills our minds. Sometimes, we think we see an illusion; sometimes, it seems like we see a delicate painting. But it’s real; two thousand, seven hundred hand-lit candles and millions of lights in shades of red, blue, green, and white lights illuminate the sculpture gardens. Nights of a Thousand Candles is an annual South Carolina celebration of art and light.
USAToday listed Brookgreen Gardens in the top 10 Best Botanical Garden Holiday Lights for the past six years. So many organizations and publications have bestowed awards for Nights of a Thousand Candles that they are too numerous to name.
Brookgreen Gardens is on the National Register of Historic Places. Tickets for Nights of a Thousand Candles go fast. Get yours early.
Travel Notes
Anna Hyatt Huntington was an accomplished sculptor known for large-scale works and realism. One of her notable pieces includes the first public monument by a female, Joan of Arc, located in New York City. With her husband, Archer Huntington, they constructed Atalaya Castle, where Anna created her work. In 1931, they established Brookgreen Gardens. Atalaya Castle is presently a museum located in Huntington Beach State Park. Brookgreen Gardens is spread across a vast area of 1,600 acres on the other side of the Kings Highway. It is the most extensive sculpture garden in the United States. The gardens feature more than 2,000 works crafted by 430 artists.
Eddie and I love to take our guests to Brookgreen Gardens and see the awe on their faces. It’s a place to hold hands with your loved one and marvel at the scenery. It’s a place to wander alone and contemplate the beauty.
History is also an essential part of the Brookgreen experience. Walking paths along 18th and 19th-century plantation sites and rice fields include voice recordings about people who lived and worked there. Brookgreen Gardens is a place to learn about our collective heritage.
If Nights of a Thousand Candles, magnificent sculptures, stunning botanical gardens, and history are not enough, there is more! Brookgreen Gardens is also home to the Lowcountry Zoo, which the South Carolina Association of Zoos and Aquariums accredits. It’s a place to learn about our State’s flora and fauna.
Click the titles below for more of Marie’s Lowcountry South Carolina stories.
