Brief (BEVIS Bawa) Garden

Take an independent walk by yourself or with your guide through the garden. Ask one of the staff for a map. All paths lead back to the main house, so you won’t get lost. There are plenty of seats tucked away in the many nooks and crannies of the garden, which was designed to allow guests private moments. Sprawled over 20 acres, you’ll see a garden which has not changed once in the past 85 years. Designed by Bevis Bawa in the late 60’s, the Garden was once his family owned rubber plantation and is now under the care of Bevis’ staff, whom he considered family. The ‘araliya’ tree, or Frangipani tree at the entrance near the main house is the first tree Bevis planted on the property, and it’s said that Bevis fashioned the house and garden around it. Once you’re done with the walk around the garden, come up to the main house for some tea ad biscuits with Dooland De Silva. Doolan has worked at Brief Garden for the past 40 years and was very close to Bevis; he’ll take you on a small tour of the house, which used to be the home of Bevis, and which has an eclectic range of artwork on display – from homoerotic sculptures to a wonderful mural of Sri Lankan life in the style of Marc Chagall.

Suitable for children:
Children above the ages of 5 are welcomed at the Gardens, however small children may not follow the explanations, and the experience is designed for those with a keen interest in Bewis Bawa, tropical gardens and landscaping.

Suitable for children:
Children above the ages of 5 are welcomed at the Gardens, however small children may not follow the explanations, and the experience is designed for those with a keen interest in Bewis Bawa, tropical gardens and landscaping.

Important to know:
Children need to be accompanied at all times by an adult and are restricted from touching or playing with any of the antique sculptures in the house and around the gardens.

Private or not?
This experience is always private.

About the Host
Bevis Bawa (26 April 1909 – 18 September 1992) was a Sri Lankan artist. He was also one of the most renowned landscape architects in Sri Lanka and the Aide-de-camp to four Governors of Ceylon. The eldest son of Justice Benjamin William Bawa, a wealthy and successful lawyer, of Muslim and English parentage, and Bertha Marianne nee Schrader who was of mixed German, Scottish and Sinhalese descent, Bevis’s younger brother was Geoffrey Bawa (1919-2003), regarded as one of the most important and influential Asian architects of the twentieth century.