When Brookgreen Gardens opened its new Purdy Center earlier this year, the event served as a harbinger of the nonprofit’s Campaign for the Next Generation, a comprehensive initiative to strengthen and expand Brookgreen’s impact for decades to come.

The new Welcome Center and Conservatory Garden marks a new chapter for the nearly 95-year-old Brookgreen Gardens, broadening the visitor experience while expanding opportunities for education, horticulture, art, and community engagement.

The design and construction materials pay homage to Archer Huntington’s Moorish design of Atalaya, notes Lauren Joseph, vice president of marketing for Brookgreen.

The Purdy Center offers a modern, welcoming entry point for guests and significantly enhances visitor flow and amenities while amplifying the capacity for educational programming, exhibitions, and special events. 

Central to the Purdy Center is the Conservatory Great Hall, a light-filled, climate-controlled indoor garden featuring a floor-to-ceiling tropical Green Wall, rotating seasonal and botanical displays including orchids, and skylights and clerestory windows that flood the space with natural light.

“The medallion design over the main entrance, and as a central motif in the orchid wall, was derived from the wrought-iron gates at the Allston Cemetery at the Oaks Plantation site. “We are using this to recall the history of the Brookgreen property and to honor the unknown enslaved person who designed and crafted those gates,” she notes.

Brookgreen Gardens

1931 Brookgreen Dr.

Murrells Inlet, SC

$25/adult non-members

www.brookgreen.org