About Us

Our Kaupapa

Xanthe White Design is a studio working across a wide spectrum of Landscape Design projects in New Zealand and Internationally. Works include residential, community and commercial spaces as well as installations, with an openness to the process of creative collaboration.

Our practice focuses on the relationships we as people hold with private, shared and natural gardens and landscapes, with each of our projects varying in scale and being unique to the place and people involved.

Xanthe White Design Studio is a bridge between people and the natural world, nurturing respectful and understanding relationships. At the core of our work is our desire to uphold and preserve the art of gardening. We acknowledge our responsibility to positively impact communities and the planet via thoughtful and sustainable design, respecting native ecologies and the whenua.

Our Process

The design process begins by visiting your site and talking through your project. From these conversations we put together a design brief and outline the stages of the design, including a fee proposal. Once you are happy with this we start the concept design.

We are able to manage the project for you or if you are looking to develop your garden in stages over time we can support you as little or as much as needed.

Get in touch by clicking here.

Our Whānau

Xanthe White

Principal Designer
— President and Fellow of the Garden Design Society NZ

Xanthe has twenty-six years experience in Landscape design working in New Zealand, Europe and Asia. Her practice ranges from residential to large-scale community projects. She believes design is the art of making connections between people and place, and extends her work to writing and communicating the art of gardening. The joy in her work comes from the people, places and the pleasure of working in a creative studio environment where her work is challenged and expanded by the diversity of skills and perspectives that surround her.

Yule Maloney

Studio Manager

Born in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea and moving to New Zealand as a toddler, Yule has always had a passion for the outdoors. She has spent many years working in customer service and management and now joins the Xanthe White Design team as Studio Manager. With a love for travel, fashion, beautiful design and of course, gardening, Yule is an integral part of the XWD studio.

Kaea Tamariki

Studio Assistant
— Ngāti Whātua, Ngāpuhi

Kaea is New Zealand born and bred who began his journey with Ngāti Whātua ki Orakei. He found his love for gardens both national and international through the conservation efforts of his iwi, the diverse gardening techniques of other nations, and the impact garden has on a person based on its visual representation, practical uses, and/or educational, emotional, and spiritual value.

Kaea likes the idea of preparing for the future, even if it’s a future he himself may not be able to see, what matters most to him are the rangatahi and the impact his actions may have on them. Ā, nāku te kākano ka whakatō hei rākau nui mo ngā rangatira o āpōpō me o rātou nei rangatahi kia hā te ora, kia huri hei waka, kia mau hei tiaha rānei, nā rātou te kī whakamutunga mo te hua i kohangia i au.

Yvonne Yung

Landscape Architect
— Bachelor of Landscape Architecture
— Master of Landscape Architecture

Born in Hong Kong, one of the busiest cities in the world with extensive urban landscape development. Yvonne earned her bachelor's degree in China and pursued her master's degree in Singapore. Yvonne possesses experience in hospitality, commercial, and residential projects across Singapore, Hong Kong, and Macau. During her time studying and working in Singapore, she was immersed in a tropical landscape environment, which greatly influenced and inspired her.
Yvonne's passion lies in nature landscape and particularly in Arboriculture. This enthusiasm suggests that she brings a distinct perspective to her work, likely incorporating elements of natural beauty and ecological considerations into her projects.

David Ting

Garden Maintenance and Soft Landscaping

Peter Hutchins

Soft Landscaping / Project Management

James Walkinshaw

Principal Designer, Wellington
— Bachelor of Architectural Studies
— Accredited Garden Designer - GDSNZ

Growing up in coastal towns and cities around New Zealand instilled in James a love of place, space, and our unique natural world, which in turn drew him to study Architecture and then to Landscape Design. Over the past ten years working for Xanthe White Design, James has had the pleasure of working on a variety of work from large-scale international gardens and iwi-led community projects to urban back gardens and small courtyard designs. James believes a garden is a synergy of its people, its site, and its place here in Aotearoa. James values the unique quality each client instills in their own garden and enjoys working with them to achieve something that is truly special.

James heads the Wellington studio.