Spirit: Garden Inspiration: By Dan Pearson

by Dan Pearson, Beth Chatto (Foreword)

Taking inspiration from art, sculpture, Chicago prairies and folk architecture such as tree houses, Dan Pearson--acclaimed garden designer and "green-fingered guru" at the U.K. newspaper The Observer --lays out his design philosophy and working process, giving readers direct insight into his collaborative approach of working with nature, instead of imposing preconceptions upon it. Journeying from New Zealand to Japan via Thames-side barge gardens, Pearson focuses on the spirit of place as it emerges through geography, history, architecture and native flora, extrapolating this sense of place into a new gardening philosophy. Very far from conventional gardening books, Spirit radically expands the genre, inviting us to understand the act of gardening in the light of contemporary needs and with a keen environmental awareness; Pearson particularly stresses the importance of skills such as being able to "read" a variety of landscapes (both wild and cultivated), and of staying open to what those landscapes suggest in terms of cultivation. This long-awaited publication is Pearson's first in eight years, and uses 400 of his own much-admired photographs as reference points. Dan Pearson began his career as a professional designer in 1987. He is co-author of The Essential Garden Book (with Sir Terence Conran) and author of The A Year at Home Farm . He has presented and appeared in several TV series and has designed five award-winning Chelsea Flower Show gardens.

Genres: Gardening, Nonfiction, Nature

208 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Dan Pearson is an English landscape designer known for his pioneering work in naturalistic perennial planting. After early training at RHS Wisley, Kew Gardens, and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, he founded his own design practice in 1987. His work spans private gardens, public landscapes, and international commissions, including Tokachi Millennium Forest in Japan and the restoration of Althorp’s grounds. He has received multiple RHS Chelsea Flower Show gold medals, was named Royal Designer for Industry, and has collaborated with prominent architects and artists. Pearson is also a writer, broadcaster, and the author of several acclaimed books on gardening.

Reviews

[Patricia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This combination of natural landscapes and human gardens that respond to the spirit of them sounded fascinating. It includes some memorable photos. Sadly they are hard to see. Lots of detail crowds into a little space and the paper they were printed on seems to suck out the sharpness. The lack of captions is frustrating because the text does not always explain what we are looking at. The text, too, put up barriers with small sans serif type with overly tight leading.

[Skyler · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't bear to drop this below four stars, although the darkness of the photos tempts me to do so.