Cover From measured plans to a fully realised render, Isabella Ellis translates landscape strategy into a living environment for an upcoming US-based project
From measured plans to a fully realised render, Isabella Ellis translates landscape strategy into a living environment for an upcoming US-based project
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From studying East Asian art to working in London design studios, Isabella Ellis designs gardens as living ecosystems meant to be enjoyed by all generations
Isabella Ellis does not design gardens to be viewed from indoors. She designs them to be lived in.
Her approach has been shaped across continents: childhood summers in New England gardens, academic years immersed in East Asian art, rigorous training within some of London’s most respected landscape studios. The result is a practice defined by clarity, restraint and ecological intelligence.
Whilst studying Art History in college, Ellis worked for an interior designer, an experience that first sparked her interest in shaping beautiful spaces for clients. She later completed a Master’s in the History of East Asian Art, a field that continues to influence the restraint and composition present in her landscape work.
East Asian art introduced her to the power of restraint and the importance of space. Japanese ink paintings in particular left a lasting impression. With only a few deliberate strokes, an entire mountainscape could be suggested. That economy of gesture continues to inform her planting schemes. In a garden, one well-placed tree can hold a composition as confidently as any architectural element. “I never want to add something simply because I can,” she says. “Every element has to earn its place.”
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Above Isabella Ellis in a New England garden, where her relationship with landscape first began
Isabella Ellis in a New England garden, where her relationship with landscape first began
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Asia has also become part of her story. Married to a Filipino, Ellis and her husband spend time each year in Cebu, a place they increasingly see as a second home. Having studied Asian art, she is deeply interested in the region’s landscapes and cultural relationship with nature, and believes the Philippines holds remarkable potential for thoughtful, climate-responsive garden design.
That instinct was refined in London. At the Inchbald School of Design, and later whilst working with Urquhart & Hunt and Luciano Giubbilei Design, Ellis developed both technical precision and ecological awareness.
At Urquhart & Hunt, planting was approached as habitat building. Extensive time was spent understanding native plants and the wildlife they support: which species attract insects; which insects bring birds; how gardens can encourage richer ecosystems through rewilding rather than exist as isolated decorative spaces.
At Luciano Giubbilei’s studio, discipline took another form. Proportion, materiality and patience were central, with every line carefully considered and each tree deliberately chosen. It was then that Ellis came to appreciate how crucial it is to design gardens that mature gracefully.
Above At Villa Ponti in Italy, Isabella Ellis pauses within a playful landscape designed to invite movement, interaction and a deeper connection with the garden
At Villa Ponti in Italy, Isabella Ellis pauses within a playful landscape designed to invite movement, interaction and a deeper connection with the garden
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Her process reflects that balance. Before planting, she spends time studying how each species will grow, spread and interact. Bloom times are mapped carefully, colour relationships tested, textures layered with foresight. By the time anything enters the ground, she has already anticipated its future form. The goal is not constant revision. The garden should evolve naturally.
Once established, she allows space for movement. She begins with structure: canopy trees, anchors and the relationship between house and landscape. Evergreen shrubs follow, creating depth and shelter. Only after the framework is resolved does she introduce perennials and softer planting, building rhythm across the seasons.
There is a quiet confidence to her layouts. They are neither sparse nor crowded, composed without feeling over-controlled. This distinguishes her from a prevailing global aesthetic that prioritises immaculate order: perfectly edged lawns, identical shrubs spaced with rigid symmetry, beds dominated by mulch rather than growth. Such spaces can appear finished, but rarely feel alive.
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Ellis prefers density, layering and subtle spill. Shrubs must be large enough to walk behind. Planting should soften boundaries. Seasonal shifts must remain visible rather than erased. A successful garden, in her view, should feel inhabited, by its owners, certainly, but also by other creatures such as birds, insects and the quiet activity that signals a healthy ecosystem.
Sustainability, for her, is practical rather than ideological. Raised with the maxim “use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without”, she approaches landscape decisions with care. Local stone is prioritised. Materials are chosen for longevity. Designs are resolved thoroughly so they do not require repeated intervention.
“There is always some environmental impact when building a garden,” she says. “But if it’s designed well and lasts for decades, that’s far better than constantly redesigning.” More fundamentally, she believes time spent outdoors transforms how people relate to their environment. Gardens create attachment. They teach patience. They cultivate observation.
Above From measured plans to a fully realised render, Isabella Ellis translates landscape strategy into a living environment for an upcoming US-based project
From measured plans to a fully realised render, Isabella Ellis translates landscape strategy into a living environment for an upcoming US-based project
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Her own childhood memories are tactile: soil under fingernails, strawberries hidden in borders, helping deadhead roses. Those early experiences inform her resistance to spaces that are too polished to enter. Gardens should accommodate play as comfortably as contemplation. “Whether you’re 70 and appreciating the layout, or six and hiding behind irises”, she says, “you should feel welcome in it.”
As climate patterns shift, landscape designers are taking on broader responsibilities. Water management, heat mitigation, plant resilience and biodiversity are becoming central considerations. The most compelling work today, Ellis believes, lies at the intersection of environmental intelligence and aesthetic clarity.
For Ellis, the future of garden design is not about spectacle but about depth: landscapes that mature over time and quietly invite people back outside into a closer relationship with nature; spaces that feel considered, generous and alive.
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Credits
Photography: Mark Spooner
