Quick five questions with Andy Sturgeon – Andy Sturgeon Design
11th June 2024
You have won Gold at Chelsea quite a few times, does any other award mean as much to you?
I’ve won Best In Show at Chelsea three times and I think those awards probably mean the most to me. At Chelsea you stick your head above the parapet in a way that doesn’t happen in any other sphere or for any other award and being judged by my peers means a lot. That said, Chelsea represents a relatively small portion of our body of work and yet it defines us in a way that I sometimes wish it didn’t. We work all over the world on all scales and I would like more of those projects to be recognised in the same way.
Welsh garden – photo credit Helen Fickling
Your work uses architectural elements and materials as much as the planting, where did this wonderful skill come from?
Perhaps my greatest asset is that I am not formally trained. I initially studied horticulture and then worked as a gardener which gave me plant knowledge and importantly a real passion for plants but my ability as a designer has largely come through observation. When the gardening boom happened in the nineties I didn’t really have any gardens or garden designers as a point of reference and I took inspiration from what was around me. I was enthralled by the visual arts, furniture, set design, architecture, graphic design, sculpture and the natural world and I just found something in all of them. I travel a lot and continue to absorb anything and everything although I am less interested in new materials and more interested in craftsmanship.
Snowberry Hill, Bermuda – photo credit Helen Fickling
Snowberry Hill, Bermuda – photo credit Helen Fickling
Working around the world must have its challenges- what’s the most complicated environment to work in?
We are blessed in the UK with a fantastic climate for growing plants, the range we can grow is vast and availability is fantastic but in any other climate it is harder as the choice is relatively small. Surprisingly, the tropics are tricky because the palette is tiny and almost identical whether you are in Chennai, the Caribbean or Columbia. In other places phytosanitary regulations to stop the spread of pests and diseases prohibit importation and in Bermuda I had to ride round the island on a moped and knocked on doors to ask if we could buy plants from people’s gardens. Also the harsh sunlight and lack of seasonal change in the Tropics doesn’t flatter subtle plant compositions and results can seem less sophisticated. But it does get even harder when its cold. We used to work in Russia where an evergreen was out of the question unless it was a conifer.
Isle of Wight – photo credit Rachel Warne
Isle of Wight – photo credit Rachel Warne
Does living near Brighton and the coastline influence your work?
I have become fascinated with plant communities in recent years and I am particularly intrigued by primary succession where plants colonise a new landscape and transform it over a period of time. In Brighton that could be the bare shingle beach, the chalk cliffs nearby or a quarry up in the South Downs. But I never replicate natural environments in a garden because they are by definition contrived, conceptual spaces. And in any case, nature does it so much better. Instead, I take the idea of community. I observe how one plant looks next to another when it has evolved in the same place and also how one plant behaves next to another one so I can understand the long term requirements for maintenance. From this I can combine plants that look comfortable together but also understand their long term maintenance needs so I can be certain how they will perform over time and know that a gardener can look after them in the right way.
Chelsea 2023 – Photo credit Marianne Majerus
Photo credit Clive Nichols
Do you have a favourite brief for a garden?
It should be by the waterside but also on a gentle hillside with different levels. It should either have a contemporary house or a beautiful historic building. The garden should be large and lead onto and sit within a dramatic natural landscape. A mediterranean climate is preferred but not essential. The client should be open minded and full of ideas and enthusiasm.