Dartington has appointed Ella Frears as the first ever Poet in Residence for the estate’s Grade II Listed gardens.

Ella is a poet and visual artist who hails from St Ives, but now lives in London.

Her collection ‘Shine, Darling’ was shortlisted for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection, and the T. S. Eliot Prize for Poetry.

She was a finalist for the Arts Foundation Poetry Fellowship and has been Poet in Residence for the National Trust, K6 Gallery, Royal Holloway University physics department, and the John Hansard Gallery where she wrote ‘I Am The Mother Cat.’ Ella’s poems about the St Ives Modernists are currently on display at Tate St Ives.

Ella is to spend a year at Dartington, exploring the changing landscape through the seasons and delving into the rich history of its gardens and the landscape architects and gardeners who have created it over the years.

This includes pioneering landscape architect Beatrix Farrand, who was brought over from America by Dorothy and Leonard Elmhirst to redesign the courtyard in the 1930s.

Ella said: “I’m absolutely thrilled!

“What a beautiful place to write.

“What a rich and fascinating history to engage with.

“After being locked down with no garden for much of the pandemic, I can’t wait to spend some time with the yew trees, walking the tiltyard, chatting to gardeners, observing the seasons, as well as communing with the artists and writers who have occupied this space before.”

Dartington announced the search for a poet in residence last November and was overwhelmed by the response.

Applicants were judged by writer Dr Martin Shaw and poet Alice Oswald, who said: “It is hard to turn people down and we had some very good poets applying for this residency, but we have chosen Ella Frears because she seems to understand the wayward and experimental style which has always been a part of Dartington.

“She is a great communicator. She uses conversation and research as part of her practice, so I believe that she will be changed by Dartington as much as we will be changed by her.

“I very much look forward to welcoming her to the estate.”