Inside the incredible 12-metre-high 'Wedding Cake' pavilion in Buckinghamshire decorated with frosted mermaids - Daily Mail

By Laura Sharman

Updated: 17:49 BST, 4 September 2023

'Many artists have the "impossible project" and this is mine.'

So says Portuguese artist Joana Vasconcelos of her mouthwatering 'Wedding Cake' pavilion, the sweetest of architectural treasures awaiting visitors to Waddeson Manor in Buckinghamshire.

Almost five years in the making, the 12-metre-high (39ft) cake is covered in thousands of icing-like tiles glazed in pale pinks, greens and blues, with Vasconcelos declaring it the 'biggest challenge' of her 30-year career.

Visitors can explore all three tiers of what Vasconcelos describes as 'a temple to love' and what the venue says is 'part sculpture, part architectural garden folly [and] a celebration of... festivity and joy'.

Guests can wander past ceramic mermaids and dolphin statues with water trickling from their mouths, gaze upon golden walls and pastel blue columns, and admire pink spears that dangle from the ceiling like chocolate drops.

In keeping with its festive theme, there are also electric candles and mini statues of marriage saint St Anthony to bless newlyweds.

The floors are connected by spiral staircases the colour of butter, with guests able to become human cake toppers at the top, where they can soak up views over the beautiful Waddesdon grounds.

The pavilion was inspired by 'the exuberant Baroque buildings and decorative ceramic traditions of Lisbon, where Vasconcelos lives and works', according to the venue.

It was also 'built to entertain', a sentiment that echoes the traditions of hospitality at the 18th-century garden pavilions, it added.

Vasconcelos said: 'I wanted people to have three different approaches to it.

'Looking from the outside, enjoying the surroundings from the different levels or balconies and rising to the top, finally completing the artwork with their presence.'

Guided tours are running on Thursdays and selected Sundays until October 26. For more information visit waddesdon.org.uk/whats-on/wedding-cake-tours.

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