Description
This collection includes manuscript and
typescript pages of poems, plays and stories by Chadwick. Also included are digital
publicity photographs and copies of theater reviews from Chadwick's theater days in South
Africa.
Background
The English born Alan Chadwick came into the world on July 27, 1909. Born into the upper
class of Edwardian society, Alan was exposed at a young age to a variety of aesthetic
pursuits, gardening being chief among them. As a youth the mystic Austrian philosopher
Rudolph Steiner heavily influenced him. Steiner's theories, though largely disregarded by
the wider academic community, found a stronghold in the mind of young Alan. Later in his
life Chadwick would combine what he learned from Steiner with French gardening techniques to
develop his own brand of biodynamic horticulture. Chadwick's passion for the arts led him to
the Shakespearean theater where he performed professionally for thirty two years. However
his life pursuit of beauty was violently interrupted by the Second World War, which he
described as having "capsized my attitude to civilization." After the war he moved to South
Africa where he continued to act and to garden. In 1967, Chadwick was persuaded by his
friend Countess Freye von Moltke to take a position at the burgeoning UC Santa Cruz. During
his time at the University, Chadwick labored to construct a showcase garden employing his
biodynamic techniques. While working the soil, he taught the students his philosophy based
on a clear understanding of the rhythms of nature in creating a thriving botanical
environment, as well as about the role of the garden in human culture. Chadwick was an
extremely magnetic individual who attracted a large following to his lectures and a large
number of devoted volunteers, whom he worked hard in the garden. Though a charming person,
Chadwick was also quick to anger and notoriously difficult to get along with at times. This
aspect of his personality, along with disputes over the direction of his ambitious farm
project, led to his leaving the University in 1973. In the final seven years of his life,
Alan continued to work in his signature style helping to create several gardens around
America. He died on May 25, 1980.
Restrictions
Property rights for this collection reside with the University of California. Literary
rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. The publication
or use of any work protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use for research or
educational purposes requires written permission from the copyright owner. Responsibility
for obtaining permissions, and for any use rests exclusively with the user.