It's hard to miss the giant, eight metre high, green, metallic sculpture of a cactus, spikes and all, as it stands sentinel-like over the main entrance to the Cactus Garden.
The cactus motif is cleverly repeated throughout the garden: on door handles, in the big wrought iron front gates and in slightly more abstract forms; such as in the beautiful glass ball sculpture that adorns a spiral staircase in the stylish bar, situated beneath the restored Gofio mill, at the rear of the garden.
This is all the work of César Manrique, the island born artist and architect who famously helped to shape relatively restrained development on Lanzarote during the 1970's and 80's.
Manrique's prolific output is reflected in the fact that he not only designed virtually every major tourist attraction on the island, albeit in collaboration with many other eminent artists and architects, but also that he designed each of them in great depth too.
For example, at every one of the official seven centres of culture and tourism Manrique created a special motif, or logo, such as the Fire Devil at Timanfaya or the crab at Jameos del Agua.
Similar attention to detail can be found not just in the planting within the Cactus Garden but also within the structure and colours of some of the 1,000 plus species on show, with many displaying incredible complexities and colours on close inspection and stunning flowers at certain times of the year.
Reference: http://www.lanzaroteguidebook.com/information/sightseeing/attractions/jardin-de-cactus