Growing up in a horticultural family , it ’s little surprisal that Dan Bristow wound up mould in the field as an laurels - winning Garden Designer .
Dan ’s designing body of work has taken him around the world and in this template , we talk about his early inspirations in the field , the difference between plan in the UK and afield , and how he envisions the futurity of the industry .
What Inspired You To Transition From Fine Art & Graphic Design To Garden Design?
“ Happenstance , ” Dan simply posit .
“ My parents were both works people and had taught me all the wildflower and native trees when I was a kid , but I had felt that garden invention was too complex a correction to look at .
“ It seemed to me like trying to be an designer using organic building blocks or a painter with a constantly shift canvas .
“ I take a chore as a maintenance nurseryman while I was in graphic design to get outside and experience the soil and seasons and slowly the two worlds of horticulture and design merged . ”
Were There Any Specific Gardens Or Designers That Inspired You When You Were Just Starting Out?
“ Actually , no ! I was initially quite concerned about the desire to emulate others , preferring to have an outsider ’s take .
“ I had a private instructor when take graphic intention who recommended that we never show graphic design magazine , or else engaging in something unrelated like Embroidery Monthly or the Mathematical Gazette – advice which has clearly stuck with me .
“ That approach certainly made for spate of tribulation and error ahead of time on and I ’ve become interested in other designers and garden in recent years , but am still intrigued by the approximation of those outside of horticulture and seek to keep that overbold , first principles viewpoint . ”
Image by Luca Anzalone
Can You Describe The Philosophy Behind ‘Propagating Dan’ And How It Sets You Apart From Other Garden Designers?
“ The aim of our landscapes is to heighten the experience of animation , play and playing outdoors , ” he shares .
“ Each project must , of course , hire with the architecture and its beleaguer context of use – whether by complementing or consciously contrast with it , it really comes down to what variety of space we are creating with and for the guest .
“ Our precept are ground - witting by nature , so we feel that the landscape themselves do n’t necessitate to overtly jut out this ethos and are aesthetically free as a result .
Image by Rick Pushinsky
“ We do n’t impose a preconceived style on our projects , and we do n’t shy off from incorporating factor that are n’t part of current pattern orthodoxy – and so it really is true , with us , that each garden we design is very different from the others .
“ I suppose my deep love of using extensive , well - researched and more strange plant palettes perhaps overarch . We sample to take a bluff , irreverent and playful approach , married with a grounded , long - full term centering .
“ I palpate like a combination of levity and craftsmanship is what makes our gardens different from other designers and I go for that this commitment to doing things slightly out of doors of design orthodoxy will stay with us always ! ”
Image by Oskar Proctor
You’ve Designed Gardens Both In The UK And internationally. Are There Any Specific Challenges Or Considerations When Designing For Different Climates?
“ dead ! ” says Dan .
“ It ’s really exciting to design for a unlike clime or new architectural vernacular , as it open up up a whole raw palette . We seek to tap into local knowledge , and definitely do n’t go in thinking we have all the answer .
“ There are often very good reason that determine the particular use of materials and plants in an surroundings , so we step carefully .
Image by Luca Anzalone
“ It ’s more about go for techniques to create an standard atmosphere by use the range of plant life available , and possibly bestow in a unexampled landscaping estimate but using local material to do it . It ’s not about imposition or reinventing the wheel . ”
What Is One Piece Of Gardening Advice You Wish You Could Give To Your Younger Self?
“ Do n’t try reinvigorating a largepampas grassusing the just - lot - fire - to - it method acting in the centre of a heatwave … ”
How Do You Envision The Future Of Garden Design, Especially In The Context Of Climate Change And Sustainability?
“ I think that our dependance to imported plant from the continent will have to stop , and UK - grown plants will come to the forefront again , ” he hopes .
“ The same lead for imported Harlan Fisk Stone . We are doing a projection in Aberdeenshire and I was dispirit to get that there are now no quarries in Scotland producing granite for anything other than mass , despite the city of Aberdeen famously being built of it .
“ There are still local quarries around that have a wealth of knowledge about their material , we should be supporting them .
Image by Luca Anzalone
“ I am a passionate truster in responsible , longsighted - term focused purpose . I ’d like to think that our gardens could , and should , mature for 10 if not centuries . I do n’t wish the approximation that gardens yield to drift and are replace , wholesale , every 10 or two . ”
What’s The Most Rewarding Aspect Of Your Work And What Keeps You Passionate About Garden Design?
“ The compounding of creativity , nature and the constraint of the build environment is continuously fascinating to me . There are myriad possibility which I now just see as opportunities – unlike my younger self !
“ Another gratifying element is the petite part we have to dally in ‘ greening ’ city , breaking up one concrete slab at a clip to create living and breathing oases . ”
What’s Next For ‘Propagating Dan’?
“ I ’ll be off to Crete soon to do the setting out of the plants on a task there , which I ’m really mad about , ” Dan part .
“ We have also just start up work on a 2,000 square time roof garden in the middle of St. Austell , Cornwall . ”
