Dan Pearson (born 9 April 1964) is an English landscape designer, specialising in naturalistic perennial planting.
Early life
Pearson was brought up in an
Arts and Crafts house on the
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...
–
Sussex border.
His father is a painter who taught fine art at
Portsmouth Polytechnic
The University of Portsmouth is a public university in Portsmouth, England. It is one of only four universities in the South East England, South East of England rated as Gold in the Government's Teaching Excellence Framework. With approximately 28 ...
and his mother taught fashion and textiles at
Winchester School of Art
Winchester School of Art is the art school of the University of Southampton, situated 10 miles (14 km) north of Southampton in the city of Winchester near the south coast of England.
History
The Winchester School of Art was founded in 187 ...
.
Pearson was employed at a weekend gardening job for Mrs. Pumphrey at Greatham Mill Gardens,
Hampshire
Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in western South East England on the coast of the English Channel. Home to two major English cities on its south coast, Southampton and Portsmouth, Hampshire ...
, which cultivated his interest in gardening. Backed by his parents, at 17, he decided against going to art college and dropped out of his
A level
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...
s to go to the
RHS Garden, Wisley. This was approved by his parents and he became a RHS Wisley trainee on the certificate course.
Pearson attended the
Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is a scientific centre for the study of plants, their diversity and conservation, as well as a popular tourist attraction. Founded in 1670 as a physic garden to grow medicinal plants, today it occupies ...
for a year to work in the Rock Garden and the Woodland Garden and went on to complete the three-year
Kew Gardens
Kew Gardens is a botanic garden in southwest London that houses the "largest and most diverse botanical and mycological collections in the world". Founded in 1840, from the exotic garden at Kew Park, its living collections include some of the ...
course. Following this he returned to his role maintaining Frances Mossman’s garden at Home Farm in Northampton.
Mossman, was the creative force behind
Next
Next may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Film
* ''Next'' (1990 film), an animated short about William Shakespeare
* ''Next'' (2007 film), a sci-fi film starring Nicolas Cage
* '' Next: A Primer on Urban Painting'', a 2005 documentary film
Lit ...
and, later, George at
Asda
Asda Stores Ltd. () (often styled as ASDA) is a British supermarket chain. It is headquartered in Leeds, England. The company was founded in 1949 when the Asquith family merged their retail business with the Associated Dairies company of Yorks ...
and at
Wedgwood
Wedgwood is an English fine china, porcelain and luxury accessories manufacturer that was founded on 1 May 1759 by the potter and entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood and was first incorporated in 1895 as Josiah Wedgwood and Sons Ltd. It was rapid ...
.
He also undertook student scholarships studying wildflower communities in the
Picos de Europa
The Picos de Europa ("Peaks of Europe", also the Picos) are a mountain range extending for about , forming part of the Cantabrian Mountains in northern Spain.
The range is situated in the Autonomous Communities of Asturias, Cantabria and Castil ...
,
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
, and in the
Himalayas
The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 10 ...
.
When he was 25 he was named house garden designer at the
Conran Shop on Fulham Road.
Then Pearson set up his garden design business in 1987.
Personal life
Pearson's younger brother,
Luke, is a product and furniture designer and a partner in the company 'Pearsonlloyd'.
In 2010 Pearson and Huw Morgan restored a late 18th-century house (a 1,500-square-foot two-story buff-coloured stone building with small windows and two chimneys on a red-tiled roof,
) with 20 acres of land outside
Bath as their home and workplace, called 'Hillside'.
In a broadcast interview with
Kirsty Young
Kirsty Jackson Young (born 23 November 1968) is a Scottish television and radio presenter.
From 2006 to 2018 she was the main presenter of BBC Radio 4's ''Desert Island Discs''. She presented ''Crimewatch'' on BBC One from 2008 to 2015.
Early ...
on BBC Radio 4's ''
Desert Island Discs
''Desert Island Discs'' is a radio programme broadcast on BBC Radio 4. It was first broadcast on the BBC Forces Programme on 29 January 1942.
Each week a guest, called a "castaway" during the programme, is asked to choose eight recordings (usua ...
'', Pearson stated that he has known Morgan since the 1990s.
Career
Since 2002 he has designed gardens and has given lectures around the world, including in the U.K., Italy, U.S. and Japan.
He has designed gardens for
Jonathan Ive
Sir Jonathan Paul Ive (born 27 February 1967) is a British industrial and product designer, as well as businessman. Ive was the chief design officer (CDO) of Apple Inc. from 1997 until 2019 (known as senior vice principal of industrial design ...
,
Paul Smith,
venture capitalist Walter Kortschak, art dealer Ivor Braka, real estate businessman
Vladislav Doronin
Vladislav Doronin (; born 7 November 1962) is an international real estate developer and art collector. He is the owner and chairman of Aman Resorts, chairman and CEO of OKO Group and is a co-founder of Moscow-based Capital Group.
Early life ...
,
Torrecchia Vecchia
Torrecchia Vecchia is a private estate of over 1500 acres located in Cisterna di Latina, Lazio, Italy, which may be visited by permission. It contains over 625 acres of woodland, was recognized as a Natural Monument in 2007, and contains notable ...
for
Carlo Caracciolo ''Don'' Carlo Caracciolo, 9th Prince of Castagneto, 4th Duke of Melito (Florence, 23 October 1925 – Rome, 15 December 2018) was an Italian publisher. He created Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso, one of Italy's leading publishing groups. He was known a ...
(the late owner of the Italian newspaper
l'Espresso
''L'Espresso'' () is an Italian weekly news magazine. It is one of the two most prominent Italian weeklies; the other is '' Panorama''. Since 2022 it has been published by BFC Media.
History and profile
One of Italy's foremost newsmagazines, ' ...
), and his colleague on ''The Guardian'' newspaper,
Nigel Slater
Nigel Slater (born 9 April 1956) is an English food writer, journalist and broadcaster. He has written a column for ''The Observer Magazine'' for over a decade and is the principal writer for the ''Observer Food Monthly'' supplement. Prior to ...
(this garden was a joint effort with
Monty Don
Montagu Denis Wyatt Don (born George Montagu Don; 8 July 1955) is a British horticulturist, broadcaster, and writer who is best known as the lead presenter of the BBC gardening television series '' Gardeners' World''.
Born in Germany and rais ...
).
He restored the landscape at
Althorp House
Althorp (popularly pronounced ) is a Grade I listed stately home and estate in the civil parish of Althorp, in West Northamptonshire, England of about . By road it is about northwest of the county town of Northampton and about northwest of ...
(after
Diana's death) after 1997 and worked on the landscape for the
Millennium Dome.
He has worked at the Botanic Garden of
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
. He designed the roof garden of
Roppongi Hills
is a development project in Tokyo and one of Japan's largest integrated property developments, located in the Roppongi district of Minato, Tokyo.
Constructed by building tycoon Minoru Mori, the mega-complex incorporates office space, apartm ...
in Japan in 2002.
Another large project was the Tokachi Millennium Forest Garden, in
Shimizu, Hokkaido
is a small town located at the base of the Hidaka Mountain Range in Tokachi Subprefecture, Hokkaido, Japan. The name Shimizu is taken from the Ainu word "Pekerebetsu", which means bright clean river. As of 2011, the population of the town is ...
, which was featured on the BBC Radio 4 programme ''Designed in Britain, Built in Japan''. Another project is
Maggie's Centre
Maggie's centres are a network of drop-in centres across the United Kingdom and Hong Kong, which aim to help anyone who has been affected by cancer. They are not intended as a replacement for conventional cancer therapy, but as a caring enviro ...
in
Charing Cross, London. In 2020, he designed a new courtyard garden for
The Garden Museum in London.
Pearson has curated six show gardens at the
RHS Chelsea Flower Show
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show, formally known as the ''Great Spring Show'',Phil Clayton, ''The Great Temple Show'' in ''The Garden'' 2008, p.452, The Royal Horticultural Society is a garden show held for five days in May by the Royal Horticultural ...
including in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996 (with an outstanding roof garden), and 2004 (for
Merrill Lynch).
In May 2015, he returned to Chelsea Flower Show with the 'Laurent-Perrier Chatsworth Garden', inspired by the
Chatsworth estate in
Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...
. It won a gold medal and 'Best in Show'.
He has working relationships with architects and architectural firms in the UK including
Zaha Hadid
Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid ( ar, زها حديد ''Zahā Ḥadīd''; 31 October 1950 – 31 March 2016) was an Iraqi-British architect, artist and designer, recognised as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centu ...
,
Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners Rogers may refer to:
Places
Canada
*Rogers Pass (British Columbia)
* Rogers Island (Nunavut)
United States
* Rogers, Arkansas, a city
* Rogers, alternate name of Muroc, California, a former settlement
* Rogers, Indiana, an unincorporated communit ...
,
Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios
Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios (also known as FCBStudios) is a British architectural design firm, established in 1978, with offices in Bath, London, Manchester, Belfast and Edinburgh. The firm is known for its pioneering work in sustainable desig ...
,
David Chipperfield Architects, and 6a Architects, London. Pearson was elected a Royal Designer for Industry in 2012.
Pearson was the horticultural advisor for
Thomas Heatherwick
Thomas Alexander Heatherwick, (born 17 February 1970) is an English designer and the founder of London-based design practice Heatherwick Studio. He works with a team of around 200 architects, designers and makers from a studio and workshop in ...
's cancelled
Garden Bridge
The Garden Bridge project was an unsuccessful private proposal for a pedestrian bridge over the River Thames in London, England. Originally an idea of Joanna Lumley, and strongly supported by then-Mayor of London Boris Johnson, the designer Tho ...
, over the Thames in London.
Honours
Pearson is a tree ambassador for
The Tree Council
The Tree Council was founded in 1974 in the United Kingdom, and became a Charitable organization#Charity registration, registered charity in 1978. Its primary objective is to act as an umbrella organisation for local groups involved in the plant ...
and a member of the Society of Garden Designers. In 2011, he was elected an honorary fellow of the
Royal Institute of British Architects
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three supp ...
and was a member of the jury for the 2011
RIBA
The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) is a professional body for architects primarily in the United Kingdom, but also internationally, founded for the advancement of architecture under its royal charter granted in 1837, three supp ...
Stirling Prize
The Royal Institute of British Architects Stirling Prize is a British prize for excellence in architecture. It is named after the architect James Stirling, organised and awarded annually by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The S ...
.
[ At the Garden Media Guild Awards of 2011, he was awarded the prize for 'Inspirational Book of the Year'.
The ]Garden Museum
The Garden Museum (formerly known as the Museum of Garden History) in London is Britain's only museum of the art, history and design of gardens. The museum re-opened in 2017 after an 18-month redevelopment project.
The building is largely th ...
in Lambeth, London
Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, in the London Borough of Lambeth, historically in the County of Surrey. It is situated south of Charing Cross. The population of the London Borough of Lambeth was 303,086 in 2011. The area ...
, held an exhibition on his work in 2013. Pearson created a new planting design for the border in front of the Museum.[
He was the Winner of the 'House & Garden Garden Designer of the Year' award in 2019 and is listed in '' House and Garden, as one of the top 50 garden designers in the UK.
Pearson was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the ]2022 New Year Honours
The 2022 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrations ...
for services to horticulture.
Television and radio career
Pearson has presented and appeared in several TV series on BBC2, Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
and Channel 5. In 1992, he presented his first garden makeover programme, ''Garden Doctors''. A book of the same name later followed the series. He presented ''Dan Pearson: Routes around the World'' on Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
, a six-part travel and horticultural series by Flashback Productions, in 1997. In 2001, the BBC filmed a 12-part series, ''A Year At Home Farm'', in Northampton, for which Dan had been designing the gardens since 1987. A book later also followed the series. He appears occasionally on BBC's ''Gardeners' World
''Gardeners' World'' is a long-running British gardening programme, first broadcast on 5 January 1968. The 2022 series is the 53rd. Its first series was presented by Ken Burras and came from Oxford Botanical Gardens. Up until 2020 most of its e ...
'', and also regularly talks on radio, including appearing on Front Row on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
about the Royal Academy's 2016 exhibition 'Painting the Garden: Monet to Matisse'.
Writing
Pearson has written for such newspapers as ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', ''The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are popular names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaide, South Australia, publ ...
'' (during 2003–2006), and ''The Sunday Times
''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, w ...
'' on the subject of landscaping and home gardening. He was the garden columnist for ''The Observer Magazine
''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the w ...
'' from 2006 to 2015. He sits on the editorial board of ''Gardens Illustrated'' magazine and also writes for ''Gardeners' World'' magazine.
Books
* Co-authored with Steve Bradley
* Co-authored with Sir Terence Conran
Sir Terence Orby Conran (4 October 1931 – 12 September 2020) was an English designer, restaurateur, retailer and writer. He founded the Design Museum in Shad Thames, London in 1989 The British designer Thomas Heatherwick said that Conran ...
*
* Introduction by Beth Chatto
Beth Chatto (27 June 1923 – 13 May 2018) was an English plantswoman, garden designer and author known for creating and describing the Beth Chatto Gardens near Elmstead Market in the English county of Essex. She wrote several books about gard ...
*
*
* with Midori Shintani
is a female Japanese judoka. Shintani won a gold medal at the women's open category of the 2005 World Judo Championships in Cairo.
She won a silver medal at the +78 kg category of the 2001 World Judo Championships in Munich.
She won ...
''Tokachi Millennium Forest: Pioneering a New Way of Gardening with Nature'' ( Filbert Press, 2021)
References
External links
Dan Pearson Studio
Dan Pearson's Garden Design Company site
Presenters
BBC Gardener's World
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearson, Dan
English television presenters
1964 births
Living people
People educated at Midhurst Grammar School
Officers of the Order of the British Empire
British landscape and garden designers