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Fernando Wong

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fernando Wong
Wong in 2019
Born
EducationUniversity of Panama
OccupationLandscape Designer
SpouseTimothy C. Johnson (m. 2019)
Parent(s)Fernando Wong and Florinda Castillo-De Wong
Websitewww.fernandowongold.com

Fernando Wong is a Panamanian landscape designer born in Panama City. He moved to the United States in 2001 and established his landscape architecture firm, Fernando Wong Outdoor Living Design, Inc. in Miami Beach, Florida in 2005. Since then he has opened additional offices in Palm Beach, Florida and Southampton, New York. Wong designs large private gardens, public parks, museums and hotels (including three Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts), and has won several design awards. His television show Clipped with Martha Stewart debuted on the Discovery+ and HGTV channels on March 12, 2021. Wong has been called "one of the most important landscape designers in America" by Architectural Digest.[1]

Early life

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Fernando Wong grew up in Panama City, Panama. He is the grandson of a Chinese immigrant. He trained in architecture, and graduated with a degree in interior design from the University of Panama.[2] Wong's father encouraged him to be an athlete, so he competed as a swimmer and pentathlete from the ages of 19 to 24.[3] Wong learned to speak English by watching American television shows.[4][5] When he first moved to the United States he earned a living by doing renderings for interior designers [6] and working on a landscape crew.[7][8] The owner of the landscape company saw Wong's drawings, took him off the crew, and sent him to the office to work on designs.[3][9]

Career

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Wong established his company Fernando Wong Outdoor Living Design, Inc with his partner Tim Johnson in 2005.[3][10] When his roster of clients grew in Palm Beach,[11][12] North Palm Beach, Florida and in Jupiter, Florida, Wong opened up a second office in Palm Beach,[13] where his work has included creating landscaping for contemporary as well as historic homes.[14][15] In 2017 the company opened a third office in Southampton, New York.[2]

Wong's designs include a 15,000-square-foot sculpture garden at the Institute of Contemporary Art (Miami),[16][17][18] 3 Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts in South Florida,[9] the Four Seasons Private Residences in Fort Lauderdale,[19][20] a Starwood Luxury Collection Hotel called the Perry Lane in Savannah, Georgia,[21] and a National Park in Nassau, Bahamas for the Bahamian government.[6]

Wong designed the landscape and outdoor space at The Surf Club at the Four Seasons (Miami Beach)[9] with Pritzker Architecture Prize winning architect Richard Meier.[22] Wong also worked in collaboration with Paris-based architect/interior designer Joseph Dirand,[6] Miami architect Kobi Karp and New York interior designer Lee Mindell. He went on to design the outdoor spaces for the Four Seasons Private Residences in Fort Lauderdale with London-based interior designers Martin Brudnizki and Tara Bernard.[2]

In 2019 Wong was the honorary co-chair of the Chicago Antiques + Art + Design Show, along with award-winning interior designer Amanda Lindroth.[23]

Because Wong was trained in architecture, he uses classical architectural principles in his garden designs, like scale, balance, harmony and symmetry.[24][25][26] His designs are also influenced by his studies in interior design [27] and strategic use of lighting.[28][29][30] Wong has also branched out into indoor design ideas.[31]

Publicity

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In 2020 Discovery, Inc. announced that Wong would be part of the launch of its new subscription cable channel Discovery+ by starring with Martha Stewart and Chris Lambton in a show called Clipped.[32][33] The show premiered on Discovery+ and HGTV on May 12, 2021.[34]

In 2021 Wong was named to the Luxe Interior + Design magazine's Gold List.[35] In February of that same year, he was chosen as one of the designers for the prestigious decorator show house, Kips Bay Palm Beach.[36][37]

Awards

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Year Award Awarded by Category
2011 The DCOTA Stars of Design Award The Design Center of the Americas[38] Landscape Design
2018 The Lesly S Smith Award[39] Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach[40][41] Landscape Design
2018 Addison Mizner Landscape Award The Institute of Classical Architecture and Art[42] Landscape Architecture
2018 Luxe.Red Award for Residential Excellence in Design Luxe.Red[43] Landscape Design
2019 Luxe-Red Award for Residential Excellence in Design Luxe.Red[44] Landscape Design
2020 Luxe.Red Award for Residential Excellence in Design Luxe.Red[45] Landscape Design
2021 Addison Mizner Landscape Award The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art [46] Commercial Landscape Architecture
2021 Palladio Award Traditional Building[47][48] International Excellence in Classical Design
2021 Luxe.Red Award for Residential Excellence in Design Luxe.Red Landscape Design
2023 Addison Mizner Award Florida Chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture and Art [49] Landscape Architecture Award

Other

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Fernando Wong is a member of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art.[50] In 2019 Wong was appointed to the Palm Beach Landmarks Preservation Commission by the Palm Beach Town Council.[51][52] He resigned from the board in 2024.[53]

References

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  1. ^ Cornelius, Donna (22 September 2021). "Landscape Legend: Fernando Wong Is One of This Year's Design Stars at Antiques at The Gardens". Over The Mountain Journal.
  2. ^ a b c Hemlock, Doreen (19 December 2016). "Q&A with landscape designer Fernando Wong: living the American dream". TheRealDeal South Florida Real Estate News.
  3. ^ a b c Benn, Evan (9 January 2019). "Miami landscape-design star Fernando Wong gives luxury properties lush surroundings". Miami Herald.
  4. ^ Nesmith, Susannah (August 2017). "Express Yourself" (PDF). Indulge Magazine.
  5. ^ "A Top Garden Design Expert Shares His Tips". HGTV. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
  6. ^ a b c Weiss, Allie (8 February 2017). "10 Questions with...Fernando Wong". Interior Design.
  7. ^ "Meet Fernando Wong of Fernando Wong Outdoor Living Design". VoyageMIA. 16 November 2017.
  8. ^ Derringer, Jaime (2 February 2017). "Make your garden modern: landscape design tips from Fernando Wong". Design Milk.
  9. ^ a b c Keller, Hadley (14 February 2017). "Fernando Wong talks plans for Surf Club Miami and more". Architectural Digest.
  10. ^ Williams, Terri (6 June 2021). "3 common mistakes people make when designing an outdoor space, according to Fernando Wong of Discovery+'s "Clipped"". realhomes.com.
  11. ^ "36 Porch ideas that epitomize summer bliss". Hadley Mendelsohn for House Beautiful. 16 April 2020.
  12. ^ Hodes, Robin (July 2021). "Serenity Garden". Boca Magazine. Boca Raton.
  13. ^ "Landscape designer brings distinct style to the island". Palm Beach Daily News. 26 January 2014.
  14. ^ "Palm Beach homes:$71.85M sale sets new lakefront record;house is at 8 S Lake Trail". Palm Beach Daily News. 29 June 2020.
  15. ^ Donnelly, Shannon (31 January 2021). "In this town it's all about the green, be it money, of the preferred hue of an emerald or landscaping". Palm Beach Daily News.
  16. ^ Menking, William (7 December 2017). "New ICA Miami opens a welcoming public space in the Design District". The Architect's Newspaper.
  17. ^ Fazzare, Elizabeth (24 November 2017). "Meet the Architects Behind Miami's Newest Art Space". Architectural Digest.
  18. ^ Vogel, Wendy (27 November 2017). "ICA Miami opens in the design district". Cultured Mag.
  19. ^ Mastrandrea, Paige (15 July 2020). "WATCH:The Art of Indoor-Outdoor Living & Entertaining with Four Seasons Fort Lauderdale Private Residences". hauteresidence.com.
  20. ^ Reigler, Paul (4 December 2020). "Four Seasons to Open 5 New Hotels in 2021". Frequent Business Traveler.
  21. ^ Mantica, Ana (21 April 2017). "Hedge fun: a chat with the Four Seasons' landscaping genius". Forbes Travel Guide.
  22. ^ Four Seasons Hotel and Residences (2014). The Surf Club. New York, NY: Assouline. ISBN 978-1-6142-8302-7.
  23. ^ Logan, Liz (5 April 2019). "Landscape designer Fernando Wong lands in Chicago to share tips for creating lush landscapes". Modern Luxury.
  24. ^ Staub, Jack; Cardillo, Rob (2016) [1st pub. 2016]. Private Gardens of South Florida. Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith. ISBN 978-1-4236-3810-0.
  25. ^ Burch, Tory (18 June 2018). "Landscape Designer Fernando Wong On Summer Garden Tips". Tory Daily.
  26. ^ Dellatore, Carl (2020) [1st pub. 2020]. Garden Design Master Class, 100 Lessons From the World's Finest Designers on the Art of the Garden. New York, New York: Rizzoli International Publications Inc. ISBN 978-0-8478-6666-3.
  27. ^ Finder Weepie, Sally. "Design Tips for Outdoor Entertaining". Traditional Home. Retrieved 5 November 2019.
  28. ^ Wicks, Lauren (11 December 2020). "These Are the top 10 Predictions for 2021 Outdoor Living Trends, According to Design Experts". Veranda.
  29. ^ Wicks, Lauren (11 December 2020). "These are the top 10 predictions for 2021 Outdoor Living Trends, according to design experts". Veranda.
  30. ^ Brammer, Mikki (15 January 2021). "These Outdoor Design Trends Will Dominate in 2021". Architectural Digest.
  31. ^ Wellbank, Lauren (21 January 2021). "Four Things to Consider When Adding Hanging Flower Pots to Your Home". Martha Stewart Living.
  32. ^ White, Peter (2 December 2020). "Discovery+ Unveils Original Content Slate Including '90 day Fiancé' spinoff & Series From Kevin Hart, David Schwimmer, Martha Stewart and Michael Urie". Deadline.
  33. ^ Marx, Linda (4 May 2021). "Clipped's Fernando Wong on Co-star Martha Stewart, Celeb Clients, and Achieving the American Dream". People Magazine.
  34. ^ Keller, Hadley (11 May 2021). "Fernando Wong Talks Filming With Martha Stewart, the Best Houseplants for Beginners, and More". housebeautiful.com.
  35. ^ "Gold List 2021". Luxe Interior + Design, Palm Beach + Broward. Luxe Interior. January 2021.
  36. ^ Wicks, Lauren (22 February 2021). "Meet the 20 Designers Behind This Year's Kips Bay Palm Beach Decorator Show House". Veranda.com.
  37. ^ Hofheinz, Darrell. "Palm Beach Design Firms Earn Spot on Kips Bay Show House Roster". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  38. ^ "Fifth Annual Stars of Design Awards". Black Tie Magazine. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  39. ^ "Palm Beach tour illustrates flexibility of landmark restoration". Palm Beach Daily News. 9 March 2020.
  40. ^ "Provence, by way of Palm Beach, inspires award-winning garden". Palm Beach Daily News. 21 April 2018.
  41. ^ "Design honors: Five Preservation Foundation of Palm Beach winners". Palm Beach Daily News. 4 May 2018.
  42. ^ "Addison Mizner Awards". ICAA. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  43. ^ "2018 Luxe RED Award Winners". Luxe.Red Awards. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  44. ^ "2019 Luxe RED Award winners". Luxe.Red Awards. Retrieved 3 November 2019.
  45. ^ "2020 Luxe RED award winners". Luxe.Red Awards. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  46. ^ "2020 Addison Mizner Awards". ICAA Florida Chapter. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  47. ^ "Traditional Building Conference". Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  48. ^ Fazzare, Elizabeth. "Fernando Wong Designs Luxury Gardens with a Message". culturedmag.com. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
  49. ^ "Palm Beach firms dominate at Mizner Awards architectural competition". Palm Beach Daily News. 2 May 2023.
  50. ^ "Professional Membership Directory". ICAA. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  51. ^ "Landmarks Preservation Commission". Town of Palm Beach. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  52. ^ "Palm Beach Town Council names members to two boards". Palm Beach Daily News. 12 March 2020.
  53. ^ Wagner, Jodie (7 May 2024). "Landscape Designer Fernando Wong Steps Down from Seat on Palm Beach's Landmarks Board". Palm Beach Daily News.