New plants outside the study

Just got in three new small shrubs for the study patio area.  I've been looking for some acanthus ever seeing it in Athens on our trips there in 1998 and 1999 - it's a dramatic plant due to its height (the flowers are at eye level), and the use of the plant's leaves in classical architecture is something else I liked about it.  (Drawing is by John Ruskin, by the way). 
I had three very small ones at the old house, and they made it after the move for a short while, but not for long - the heat (and lack of water) got to them.  A few months back I finally found a couple of hot-climate varieties of acanthus mollis online at Plant Delights Nursery and ordered them. 
This is 'Rue Ledan' - it's a smaller SW Europe/N. Africa variety that should do better in hot summers.  The second, "Summer Beauty" is a hybrid (probably A. mollis x A. spinosus) which also does better in hot summers, and is larger.   It's theoretically going to become the popular version since although it is much more cutleaf than the normal acanthus, it tolerates heat a lot better.
Also picked up a sort of dwarf elephant ear, Alocasia wentii when I remembered how much I liked the elephant ear at the old house.  This variety is from the mountains of New Guinea, and is winter hardy.  It's fairly small (about 3') and what I liked was the bronze-green leaves with contrasting metallic-purple leaf backs.  It sits near one of our dwarf magnolias, which has a sort of terra cotta leaf back that I like, so I look forward to seeing it as well.