Howard Finster was a Man of Visions. He was a preacher, folk artist and celebrity in his own time. He passed in 2001, and left a living legacy: a swampy site in northwest Georgia he called Paradise Garden.
I visited Paradise Garden for the first time in 2022 for Finster Fest, a weekend long celebration of Howard Finster’s unique vision, held each September. Finster’s Paradise Gardens is idiosyncratic, eccentric and whimsical. You must see it.
You may look at Paradise Gardens and see a bunch a junk. And I’ll admit that it’s a bit cluttered and rusty for my taste. But that is ever so not the point. Finster summed up his the philosophy of his art this way:
“I TOOK THE PIECES, YOU
THREW AWAY AND PUT THEM
TOGATHER BY NIGHT AND DAY,
WASHED BY RAIN, DRIED BY SUN,
A MILLION PIECES ALL IN ONE.”
-Howard Finster
I returned in September 2023 and 2024 and plan to attend again this year. Finster Fest 2025 is slated for Saturday and Sunday, September 20-21, 2025. I hope to see you there!
Here are some snaps from my Finster Fest visits:
Flowers Blooming at Paradise Gardens
For a place called a “garden,” there’s not a lot of notable plant material to be found. This place is someone’s future native plant haven (there’s an idea for you). ON my September visit, the spider lilies were in top form. Some folks call these naked ladies or hurricane lilies.
And spider lilies’ rural Southern companion cosmos, can be found, as well.
More Scenes from Paradise Gardens
One Last Thing
When you visit Finster Fest, plan to eat at the event: the local garden club makes fantastic sandwiches to order right before your eyes. I can recommend the Fancy Tomato sandwich (“special sandwich spread” that’s a lot like a famous brand of salad dressing mixed with mayo, thickly cut tomato slices, salted, on good quality white bread). Check out the food options early to get the best selection of homemade deliciousness like pound cakes. ‘Cause once they’re gone, they’re gone.
My usual order: a fancy tomato sandwich, a slice of watermelon to eat at the event, plus a piece of pound cake for the drive home.
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