Lady Walton Centenary 2026
In 2026, we celebrate the centenary of Lady Susana Walton: the visionary behind one of Italy's most famous Mediterranean gardens, La Mortella, which continues to uphold her legacy, welcoming over 90,000 visitors annually. Born in 1926 in Argentina, Lady Walton married British composer William Walton in 1948 and made Ischia their home.
With landscape architect Russell Page, she created a unique garden that reflected her artistic sensitivity and love of nature and plants. After William's death, Lady Walton dedicated herself to transforming La Mortella into a cultural centre focused on music and honoring her husband's legacy.
To commemorate this special anniversary, the Trust has planned a year-long program of events across Italy and the UK to celebrate the life and cultural impact of this remarkable woman.
The centenary programme will start on Saturday, 28 March at 3:00 PM at La Mortella Gardens with the inaugural event “Lady Walton 100,” organised in collaboration with the Garden Club of Ischia.
The programme includes the opening of the exhibition “The Intuition of Love,” dedicated to Lady Walton, and a conference titled “Susana and Her Garden: The Story of an Extraordinary Life”.
A series of conferences on Lady Walton’s legacy, curated by the Trust's President Alessandra Vinciguerra, will be held across Italy and abroad. These events will be hosted in prestigious venues, including museums, historic residences, botanical gardens, and cultural festivals dedicated to landscape and heritage.
The Foundation’s Kepos Project, a programme of cultural lectures, will focus on the historical evolution of gardens, offering a wide-ranging exploration of garden styles and themes, while also discussing music history.
Within La Mortella Gardens, a site-specific installation by M. Catuogno, “The Intuition of Love,” will guide visitors through a poetic journey. The installation features engraved quotes from Lady Walton and people who inspired her, all set in Zaro stone and accompanied by myrtle plants (mortella in the local dialect), creating a dialogue between landscape and language.
Music remains the backbone of the anniversary’s celebrations at La Mortella:
• The Incontri Musicali, chamber music performances showcasing young musicians from leading Italian and international conservatories, will feature programmes dedicated to Walton, and tributes to Lady Walton
• This summer’s performances at the Greek Theatre by international youth orchestras will include a special performance by the SJSS Orchestra of London with The Creatures in Lady Walton’s Garden by Padma Newsome
A major concert will take place in Rome on 8 November at Teatro Palladium, featuring Orchestra Roma Tre in collaboration with the Accademia Filarmonica Romana, with music by William Walton and the suite Lady Walton’s Garden by R. Molinelli.
A new production of Façade will also be staged in Naples in collaboration with Associazione Scarlatti.
• The Publication of The Story of William and Susana, a biography by Michael Ashton
• An educational book on Lady Walton’s life (Green Care School series) will be distributed to over 5,000 primary school students in Naples and Ischia
On 21 August (nearing Lady Walton’s birthday) a tango evening will be hosted in Ischia, celebrating Walton’s Argentine heritage with an open milonga.
Celebrations will also take place across the UK:
• Bury St Edmunds (12–14 June): “Walton Weekend” within the Bury Music Festival
• London (24 July): Walton Cello Concerto at the BBC Proms, performed by the orchestra Sinfonia of London at the Royal Albert Hall and broadcast on BBC Radio 3
• Museum of Garden History, London (22 September): Conference on garden design featuring Russell Page’s drawings and a guitar recital of Walton’s Bagatelles
• Additional conferences and concerts in Norfolk, the Lake District Festival, and Sandringham