Landscape Architect Announces Retirement
by Jo Ellen Meyers Sharp
Community activities define landscape architect David Gorden
When people are asked to describe landscape architect David Gorden, the answers are the same. Calm, patient, interested and kind. That demeanor has carried him through all of his relationships with clients, colleagues, community organizations and more. He also could be described as a lifelong lover of nature and travel.
After 38 years, David Gorden is retiring from Holeman Landscape Architects and Contractors at the end of 2026.
His journey to landscape architecture took a detour or two. He first studied architecture at the University of Illinois. But when planting trees one summer for the Lisle (Illinois) Park District, “someone pulled out some (landscape) plans and I thought wow, this is kind of neat.” The plans had been created by the late Tony Tyznik, the renowned landscape architect for the nearby Morton Arboretum.
David realized “that’s what I want to do.” He changed his major to landscape architecture. The next two summers found him working as a gardener at the arboretum, where his exposure to its plantings and natural areas formed the foundation for the plant knowledge and appreciation, he has today.
Calm and careful early on
“David was in the first design studio I taught when arriving at Illinois in 1978,” said Malcolm Cairns, professor emeritus of landscape architecture Ball State University. “Great group of students. I remember David as thoughtful and curious, welcoming of design critiques and careful to respond to suggestions.”
When David graduated, he applied for the University of Illinois’ Edward L. Ryerson Traveling Fellowship, “founded to reward outstanding landscape architecture graduates who showed good promise and would seemingly benefit from their proposed travel,” Malcolm said.
David won the fellowship with his proposal to spend six months in New Zealand, where national parks make up 20 percent of the country. National parks were always an interest for David, who traveled with his parents and siblings to many in the United States during his childhood years, and that’s what he wanted to study. He was particularly interested in the role landscape architects played in national parks’ design, preservation and accessibility. “My time in New Zealand was life changing. It’s such a special place,” David said.
World tours and finding love
After returning home he was invited to give a travelogue to promote an upcoming trip to New Zealand and Australia for the Indianapolis travel company Ambassadair Travel Club. “That evolved into a job offer, and I moved to Indianapolis and worked in the travel business for seven or eight years.”
David’s sojourn to New Zealand “certainly lived up to expectations and David continued his career not in landscape architecture but organizing and leading worldwide tours,” Malcolm said. The two reconnected when the professor started teaching at Ball State.
While conducting tours, one of the travelers caught David’s eye in southern Spain. He married Polly and the couple still goes to exotic places, such as the Cook Islands. David has been to more than 80 countries, including many for humanitarian purposes.
Newly married, he was ready to cut back on his traveling. This allowed the landscape architect in him to reemerge. During a visit to the Indiana Flower and Patio Show, he met the late Mark Holeman who had an exhibit there and later offered David a position with his firm.
From golf courses to residential landscapes
At first, David developed tree-planting schemes for golf courses and apartment landscaping plans before moving into residential design work at Holeman.
Landscape architecture is a “wonderful blend of working with nature, creating spaces and places to be used and enjoyed by people and doing this in a creative and artistic way,” he said. “Landscape architects are the stewards of the land. I love plants, which are a major component of that, but also all of the other elements of our natural world.”
His work is informed by his study of how people interact with their surroundings. “What I create is for the benefits of the people who use it.”
Consultant and confidant
Mark Zelonis, the retired Ruth Lilly Director of Oldfields & Horticulture at Indianapolis Museum of Art, worked with David in many capacities. “I appreciated the fact David was a professional in the world of plants and design, which carried a lot of weight.”
David actively supported getting the American Society of Landscape Architects Centennial Medallion Bronze Plaque for Newfields, recognizing its landscape architecture and history. He
served as president of the Indianapolis Museum of Art Horticultural Society and twice chaired its fund-raising gala. “David was cool, calm and collected as the leader of the horticultural society. He raised a whole lot of money,” Mark said.
David celebrated his colleagues, too. He nominated Mark to be an honorary member of ASLA, an honor for someone who is not a landscape architect. And David helped produce a video that celebrated the life of pioneering landscape architect, the late Claire Bennett, who lived and worked in Indianapolis.
“He was a mentor in a lot of ways,” Mark said. “I could talk about what’s happening at the museum and quite often he was able to give moral and professional advice. He was a confidant.”
Ruthann Ingraham worked with David on her landscape design. As founder and past president of the Indiana Native Plant Society, she also worked with him as a volunteer, speaker and sponsor in the organization.
“You’ve got an appointment to plan your garden, but you also get on to all these other topics. He’s a great warm individual who really enjoys sharing with people and learning about people. He asks lots of questions,” she said.
David introduced her to his favorite plant, bottlebrush buckeye (Aesculus parviflora), which makes “quite a statement. He also introduced the native honeysuckle shrub (Diervilla lonicera) with yellow blossoms that are a big draw for pollinators,” she said.
Stress natives, eliminate invasive species
Along with being a promoter of native plants, he has worked to reduce and eliminate invasive plant species on the Indiana Invasive Plant Advisory Committee and the board of the Midwest Invasive Plant Network.
David volunteered with professional groups, serving as a president and trustee of the Indiana Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. He worked with college interns in his landscape practice and frequently spoke to classes at Ball State, usually emphasizing the harm caused by invasive plants and as a promoter of using native plants.
His interest in native plants grew as his clients’ demands for them increased. “My message is that not every property is conductive to the creation of a prairie or natural woodland. There either isn’t the space, the appropriate setting or the aesthetic inclination to have plantings that look too natural or in some cases wild.
“Native plants can be structured and even formal in design which is often the appropriate thing to do in what is otherwise a very unnatural location. I stress that native plants can be used in any setting,” he said.
Inspired by Mark Holeman
One might wonder where David’s commitments to his communities come from. David says Mark Holeman was an inspiration and role model. “He set the example and I wanted to follow in his footsteps to be involved.”
Mark M. Holeman served as president of area landscape associations and received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Indiana Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. David was named a Fellow of the American Society of Landscape Architects in 2018. He was nominated by the Indiana Chapter
Mark Holeman was on the Indianapolis Museum of Art’s Board of Governors (now Newfields) and for many years volunteered on the Environmental and Historic Resources Committee, guiding the work of the gardens and historic properties. David service was similar as a longtime member of the building and grounds committee. “He was a good support of what the staff and I were trying to accomplish,” Mark Zelonis said.
Bicycle travels
Since 2018, David has participated in Tour des Trees, a long-distance bicycle ride fundraiser for TREES (Tree Research and Education Endowment) Fund.
They ride scenic routes like Martha’s
Vineyard, Western Michigan and this year, the Blue Ridge Mountains. Along the route, the cyclists plant trees and promote the value of urban trees and their care.
“His recent bicycling adventures in the national Tour des Trees is such a unique expression of his travel and landscape passion,” Malcolm said. David currently serves at board chair of the national organization.
At the end of the 2026 tour, David was recognized as the year’s top fundraiser. “Plan to hear from me about my efforts to retain my position as the Tour’s top fund raiser. Your support is always appreciated,” he reported to his many donors.
In some ways, the hardest part in retiring is leaving some of the clients he’s worked with for years. “I'd say that in retirement I'm planning to check in on some of my more recent projects, to assess and see how they are doing, and look forward to watching the maturation of places I've been involved with for many years. Seeing a big tree I had planted 30 years ago gives me great joy and satisfaction.”
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