Lighting designed by Eleni Shiarlis of ES Lighting Design and manufactured by Hudson Lighting for the Parkinson’s UK garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2026, designed by Arit Anderson, built by Landscape Associates, sponsored by Project Giving Back.
Parkinson's UK - A Garden for Every Parkinson's Journey
Inspired by a workshop for gardeners living with Parkinson’s and their loved ones, this garden was designed as a sanctuary - a place that both supports and appreciates those navigating a complex and often misunderstood neurological condition.
A wide accessible path weaves through contrasting planting borders, unified by a sculptural hand-rill that functions simultaneously as a flowing water feature and tactile handrail. The movement and sound of water provide sensory cues specifically intended to assist with freezing, one of the more challenging physical symptoms of Parkinson’s.
The planting is divided into three distinct zones - uplift and energise, calm and restful, and night time - each with its own colour palette and sensory intent. The night zone is of particular significance: a soothing environment for those experiencing Parkinson’s-related insomnia, planted with greens and whites that hold interest in low light and attract pollinators after dark.
After the show, the garden was relocated to John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford - a UK Parkinson’s Centre of Excellence - where it continues to serve the Parkinson’s community permanently.
Eleni Shiarlis approached the lighting design with the same care and specificity that the garden’s medical and therapeutic context demanded. The brief was precise: light that extends the garden’s usefulness into the evening for those with insomnia, that protects the night-time planting zone, and that minimises impact on nocturnal wildlife. Every fitting had to work quietly - present but never intrusive.
The softscape planting areas are illuminated using our planting washer light at 2200K. This fitting was specifically developed for the role Eleni designated for it on this project - a low-profile, ground-level washer designed to bathe planting from beneath with an exceptionally warm, even spread of light. The result is planting that glows rather than is simply lit, with the warm amber quality of 2200K holding the green and white palette of the night zone beautifully without introducing the blue content that would compromise the garden’s purpose.
That fitting has now become a standard addition to our softscape range - a direct product of the thoughtfulness Eleni brought to this brief.
The hand-rill and seating were fabricated by Millimetre Makes, with the underside featuring LED strip at 2300K supplied by Phos Lighting. At this colour temperature the light traces the sculptural form of the rill with a warmth that reads almost candlelit in the evening - enhancing the tactile, sensory quality of the feature without drawing the eye away from the planting or introducing harsh contrast.
A focal point of the garden is the striking sculpture by UK artist Jack Eagan, This is lit using our micro spike spots, very carefully positioned by Eleni within the sculpture itself. Beam angle was selected and controlled specifically to highlight the form of the piece while minimising spill beyond it - keeping the light where it was needed and protecting the integrity of the night zone around it.
The Parkinson’s UK garden is a compelling demonstration of what lighting designed with genuine purpose looks like. Every colour temperature decision - 2200K on the planting, 2300K on the rill - was made in the context of both the human experience of the garden at night and the impact on the wildlife that uses it. The lighting extends the garden’s hours without disturbing the very qualities that make the night zone therapeutic.
It is also a reminder that low-impact lighting is not low-quality lighting. Done well, a warm, carefully directed scheme reveals a garden after dark in ways that a brighter, cooler scheme never could.
“That fitting has now become a standard addition to our softscape range - a direct product of the thoughtfulness Eleni brought to this brief.”
The planting washer, developed specifically for the Parkinson’s UK garden, is now available as part of the Hudson Lighting softscape collection.
We design and manufacture garden lighting at our workshop in Coulsdon, Surrey. Every fitting is machined, assembled and tested by hand in-house - from raw aluminium to finished product. For the Parkinson’s UK garden, we manufactured the planting washers and micro spike spots to Eleni Shiarlis’s specification, delivering a lighting scheme that meets the garden’s precise therapeutic and ecological requirements.
The lighting was designed by Eleni Shiarlis of ES Lighting Design. The fittings were manufactured by Hudson Lighting at our workshop in Coulsdon, Surrey, to Eleni’s specification.
2200K on the planting (via Hudson Lighting planting washers), 2300K on the rill and seating (Phos Lighting LED strip), and warm controlled accent lighting on the sculpture using Hudson Lighting micro spike spots.
The garden was permanently relocated to John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford - a UK Parkinson’s Centre of Excellence - where it continues to serve the Parkinson’s community.
Yes. Developed specifically for this brief, the planting washer has now become a standard part of the Hudson Lighting softscape range. Contact us for full specifications.
The sculpture is by UK artist Jack Eagan.
Yes. The lighting extends the garden’s usefulness into the evening for those with Parkinson’s-related insomnia, supports the sensory qualities of the rill and planting, and minimises impact on nocturnal wildlife and the night-time planting zone.
Whether you’re a lighting designer specifying for a show garden, a landscape contractor, or an architect - we manufacture bespoke and standard garden lighting fittings at our workshop in Surrey. Tell us what you need.
