We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Agnieszka Hubeny-Zukowska ("AH").

Garden and landscape designer, sculptor and creative artist. Lecturer at the Department of Architecture and Design, Academy of Fine Arts in Gdansk, Poland. She designed so far more than 300 gardens and also took part in almost 100 garden realizations. She graduated from the school of art, landscape architecture and garden design in Poland and the UK. Experience gained in private and historic gardens in the UK, USA and Poland. Winner of many competitions in the field of garden and landscape design. Journalist, photographer and world traveler tracking the latest garden trends. She collaborates with many publishing houses and schools.

Agnieszka Hubeny-Zukowska Designs

We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Agnieszka Hubeny-Zukowska.

Designer Interview of Agnieszka Hubeny-Zukowska:

DI: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?

AH : I started the adventure with gardens very early - already in high school. Then I managed to get practice and start a school of garden design and horticulture in the UK. Here I spent almost 5 years, and here began with my great garden adventure. Large significance for me were visiting hundreds of the English gardens, an annual visits to the Chelsea Flower Show and the practice at the John Brookes garden. Then a trip to the US, where in New York I helped in setting up and maintenance of roof gardens. I think that all these gardens, which I watched, their owners and designers with whom I met influenced who I am and how I design. I can not imagine that I could do in my life something else.

DI: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?

AH : My studio is small, founded in 1999. Typically, our team is made up to 5 designers. We all feel very much at home with family atmosphere.

DI: What is "design" for you?

AH : A good design for me combines functionality, beauty and individuality. I know I can stay in the minority, but I think that good projects are made with time, they learn from other projects, they evolve and they are timeless.

DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?

AH : We design all types of green space. Landscape architecture, city squares but the most I like to design private gardens. I really enjoy meeting and discussions with the owners when they jointly devise a plan for the future garden. Garden design I think is a common process, cooperation designer and owners - the investor. I like the difficult plot, complex and bold solutions.

DI: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?

AH : Each garden is another new challenge. I do not have a favorite, because everyone is different. I like them all!

DI: What was the first thing you designed for a company?

AH : My first project was a tropical garden in the UK for a private investor. It was an incredible challenge because it prevailed in a variety of soil conditions and light. It was an interesting adventure. Garden still exists and is doing great.

DI: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?

AH : In the work of a garden designer I usually use a pencil, ink and water crayons. However, as an artist, I work with clay and wicker. I also experiment with combining different materials and using them in the garden.

DI: When do you feel the most creative?

AH : I'm most creative when I have a difficult task and investors are open to crazy ideas. When there are no financial limitations.

DI: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?

AH : I like when my gardens are not only beautiful and matching the environment. They must also be able to care and give pleasure to their owners. Functionality and garden interest throughout the year are of great importance to me

DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?

AH : Joy, of course!!

DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?

AH : Pride, joy and curiosity, how a garden changed after a few seasons. Sometimes I look in disbelief that this what I came up with actually looks good.

DI: What makes a design successful?

AH : I think a good contact with the customer, understanding and good attitude. Then the design is appropriate for meeting the requirements of the client and my own.

DI: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?

AH : Consistency garden project with the environment and the building is very important to me. Selection of materials, accuracy of plants. The density of plantings, colors, lines of flower beds, trees ... and of course functionality.

DI: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?

AH : The responsibility is huge. Our customers do not need to know on that what we know. It is we who largely make a decision on their behalf, and they trust us. Our responsibility for what is designed, which we surround ourselves, how the world will look like in a few years, or even decades. We influence the development and design world of the future

DI: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?

AH : I think design should interact with the environment. We should learn from nature, to take an example from it and do not fight with her. Our future is a design that will help the human race to live in a sustainable world.

DI: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?

AH : Inspiration surround us on all sides. You just have to reach out. The inspiration may be nature, art, objects of everyday life ...

DI: How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?

AH : My design style is the result of my experiences and the people I met on my way. This is a mixture of English gardens, motto John Brookes "gardens are for people", madness that woke me in Charles Jencks with his Garden of Cosmic Speculation, and nature worshiped by Piet Oudolf.

DI: Can you describe a day in your life?

AH : I live in a crazy world. I design gardens, supervise their construction, conduct lectures, make photo sessions, meet with clients ... Every day looks a bit different. I get up in the morning and make a note over coffee - a plan for the day. I check my e-mail, look at what's happening in the world and move to the vortex of tasks. Sometimes I start a new project, sometimes I prepare a lecture. Sometimes I fly by plane to the other end of the country or drive a few hours to meet a client in his home amid lakes, mountains or in the middle of beautiful forests. Every day I meet new fantastic people and undertake some interesting challenge. I'm not bored.

DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?

AH : I think that the work of designer gardens, the most important is to listen to customer needs, knowledge of plants, sense of aesthetics. Own style and confidence backed by knowledge. Observation of world trends and continuous development.

DI: From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?

AH : I see only positives! Flexible working time. Frequent travel and meetings with interesting people. The possibility of realization of our ideas.

DI: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?

AH : I work on a drawing board with a pencil case full of pencils, water crayons and various erasers, and with a computer where I make technical projects. I like the Corel software family the most. I also use SketchUp, which is fast and easy to use. It helps my clients to imagine the space I design. Books are my passion that fills my office to the brim

DI: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?

AH : My day is made of rubber. I work in the "on time" and "hyper time," and it gives me enormous pleasure

DI: Who are some of your clients?

AH : Among my clients are well-known travelers, film directors, actors. Owners of residences, villas, hotels, but also city apartments. People who want to create a quiet place for rest and recreation among greenery. They are people who like nature and crazy ideas that have to interact with their buildings

DI: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?

AH : I like the most interesting and crazy challenges. Plots with "problems" are a great contribution to the creation of interesting projects.

DI: What are your future plans? What is next for you?

AH : Every day is a nice surprise. I try not to plan

DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?

AH : We work as a team, but the main design work I'm doing personally

DI: Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?

AH : At the moment I'm doing a lot of fascinating projects and having a great time. . At the moment I am working on a project to revive a small street in Sopot - a resort town located in Poland by the Baltic Sea. This is a tourist town with a short but rich history. Unfortunately, most of the world's cities have been forgotten of living people in the last decades. What counted was progress, modern architecture and fast communication. The streets are no longer a friendly place for residents. Many places have been forgotten and neglected. My project is trying to bring the street / space closer to the people who live there. I design an area that will be friendly to children, young people, families and the elderly. This is a small but important project that can revive the area.