>> Pearl Fryar: When you do something well, it speaks for itself.

What makes a difference in life is the people you made a difference in their lives.

And love is the most powerful word in the English language.

That's the way I feel.

>> Female speaker: Pearl ♪ has put Bishopville on the map.

[weed trimmer buzzing] >> Fryar: I grew up in Canton, North Carolina.

I was there all my life, really, and I was one of those kids that grew up on a-- my father was a sharecropper, so we never really had that much.

But I came from very strong family.

And from an early age, my role model was my father.

He had a third-grade education, but he was a hardworking person.

And then I was the first Afro-American from my neighborhood to go to college.

I was drafted into the military and served for three years in the military, went back to school.

But then, I think the military was really good because it gave me a chance to kind of grow up.

It changed the whole environment which I grew up in or grew up around.

A person is the total of his experiences.

And at some point, it comes out.

And so that's really what happened with me in my case.

I was always creative, and it was one of those things I always put off because I felt, well, there was other things important, and I had to make a living for my family.

But it was always in the back ♪ of my mind, you know.

>> Fryar: Once I, once I discovered-- well, once I bought this piece of property and built the house, and I kind of got into gardening.

And I figured then that was a way to show my creative-- and really get to the point where I really can express myself.

And so I got into the garden.

And I knew when I hit it.

So I kept it simple, I would say.

I would try to get Yard of the Month, and I figured once I get that, then I'd move on to something else.

And so, finally, about 1990, I really had succeeded to the point that I had created my own style and technique, only because they would not come outside the city limits to give you Yard of the Month.

So I went to this nursery to buy a plant that was cut into two tiers.

He found out that I knew nothing about gardening, and he says, "I really don't want to sell it to you," he said, "because people buy these plants, and they think they grow like that."

He said, "But I'll show you how to do it."

He took me out and gave me a three-minute lesson on how to cut the two balls or the two pom-poms.

And I came home, and it took me two years to kind of develop my own style and technique from that.

And today, when I look at it, my formal training would be a two-minute lesson from a nursery because he wouldn't sell me the plant, and a two-hour art appreciation course in college, which I couldn't figure out why in the world was I in that course.

And today, I become known for the lack of knowledge, because if I'd have had a horticultural background, I would have never done this because I was breaking too many rules.

So I didn't know that I was breaking the rules, and so when people finally made me aware that this should happen, you shouldn't do this, then I realized for one time ♪ in my life, ignorance paid off.

>> Pearl's contribution to the world of art--and I've always seen him as an artist and never as a plant-cutter-- has always been, like any very gifted artist, his ability to have an idea and see it through.

And he's very persistent.

And he doesn't need to know what's possible.

He learns what's possible through a process of experimentation.

And because he doesn't have these preconceived notions of limitations, he's able to push things much, much farther than many other topiary artists who are sort of going by the book.

It's time for him to write the book, I think.

>> You know, the fact that he was never trained and he's done all this is just unbelievable.

It lets people know that you can do anything you want to do if you set your mind to it.

>> Fryar: People that consider me a gardener are not the people that consider me an artist.

So when you put them together, I'm always doing something.

Either I'm speaking as a gardener at flower shows, or I'm speaking at universities as an artist.

And I know absolutely nothing about either one of them.

I think that's what can happen when you work at something with a passion and you use what you have to work with because my gift is a creative person.

But the problem, sometime, with creative people is that we can't afford our talent.

And I was fortunate enough that when I got to the point where I really needed the help to accomplish my goal, it was at the point people were beginning to donate money for-- to come and tour and maybe put up a donation box.

>> I was amazed, pleasantly surprised.

I knew it was going to be a neat experience, but not this, this neat.

I think the thing that clinched it for me was Mr.

Pearl.

In addition to what he's done with the plants and with fountains and with creative "scraps," as he calls it, of junk, he is just such a neat guy to listen to.

And he's so willing to share.

>> It takes so much work and so much dedication to come up with this idea and to keep up these properties.

It's just really incredible.

Everyone should see this.

>> Gatewood: Well, it's almost like, partially, Dr.

Seuss when you first walk up.

And then, the more you look, the more you see.

So it's very imaginative, very creative.

As he says, he changes it, so it's just, it's just hard to describe.

You have to be here.

You have to see it.

>> Female speaker: He spends so much time when he's here at the garden talking to visitors that everybody feels a personal connection to Pearl because of that.

He's very enthusiastic.

I don't care how tired he is or how many people he's talked to all day long, he has that enthusiasm.

>> Fryar: There are days I have at least a couple hundred people.

There's always people here.

People come in.

They hear about me, just come in, and walk through the garden.

If you ever want to visit the garden and you go downtown or you stop at some of the service stations or whatever and ask directions, you don't want to ask, "Where is that topiary garden in Bishopville?"

You ask, "Where does the guy live that cut up bushes," and they give you the directions.

If you say, "Where does the topiary guy live?"

they don't even know what you're talking about.

Everybody call me the man that cut up bushes.

>> Ross: He is a very genuine, sincere type person.

He identifies with people so well, and he cares so much about people.

>> We were really amazed to find that he was willing to give us a personal tour and gave us a little bit of background about his start and about the garden and the cornfield where it all began.

>> Ross: I learned about some of the work he's done with all of his pots and metal things and his sculpture, ornaments and things like that.

I had no idea that was here.

So that was a big treat for me to get to see that.

>> Bunch: It's unbelievable how many have visited here from so many countries.

>> Ross: To be around him and just listen to him talk, in fact we hated for it to be over because he ♪ is so delightful.

>> Fryar: One of the places is at the Waffle House.

And they kept on after me, "Well, we'd love for you to do this in front of the Waffle House."

>> He gets one up egg, a dot of grits, and bacon.

>> Fryar: At that time, I really didn't have the time.

>> Pearl comes into the Waffle House every day because of his topiary out front and because he just loves the people of the town, the people that work here.

He just loves to be out and about in the community.

And people are always coming up and taking pictures of the topiary out front, and we give them directions to his house.

And they usually eat here and then go to his topiary garden.

>> Fryar: So I went, I did the-- I guess I've been--that was about seven or eight years ago.

So every morning, ♪ we have breakfast there.

♪ >> Fryar: Number one, I always have looked at what I have accomplished from an average man point of view, from a person that took something-- who basically took nothing and made something of it, right?

So to me, that's quite an accomplishment.

The other thing was that now I have a story to tell to people that feel they have no place to go because they're not gifted academically.

We're so geared toward being academically gifted, tested, until we convince so many students they cannot achieve anything in life because they did not make all As and Bs.

And so my point is, now, because of what I am accomplishing just from using what I have, that when I talk to students is do your best academically, 'cause you're gonna need it, but at some point, do what you do well because you're gonna need the academics to deliver it.

Once you get that education, then you use it with what you do well, and usually, if you work at it with a passion, you're gonna be successful.

That's my story.

That's why I do what I do.

>> Law: Pearl has a big heart.

He has always felt a need, I think because of his background, to help people that maybe don't get help normally.

For instance, he likes to help students that are not the A students.

He likes to help what he calls the C students.

>> Fryar: I was one of those kids that wasn't supposed to make it.

So it's not so much about the students that's A and B students, gifted academically.

It's those students that's on the borderline.

You could hurt or help them quickly.

One of my greatest accomplishments was to be able to do a presentation at Harvard, and academically, I couldn't even get on campus.

I mean, that was, that was a thrill to me.

Who in the world, as a guidance counselor, is going to tell you, "Why don't you go into gardening and become a topiary artist?"

[laughs] I mean, at 18, that sound crazy, and it even sounded crazy even after I was 30, you know, and trying to get a job, you know.

But then, at 40 years old, I decided I wanted to use my talent, my God-given talent.

So I say this to you: Don't ever give up on your gift of what you do well, 'cause at some point, ♪ you can use it.

>> Fryar: Coker college is really where it where it all began because, see, Jean Grosser, she was the first one to recognize what I do as art.

Matter of fact, I thought she'd kind of lost it, but anyway... 'cause she would bring her class out to visit and to do drawings and do sketches.

>> Grosser: I've known Pearl for about 20 years, and we met at his garden in Bishopville, and as soon as I saw his sculptures, his living sculptures, I immediately knew that I wanted to take students there to see his work.

And so every fall, I took my freshman basic design class to see his artwork, and we drew there and did a whole project on shape at his place.

>> Fryar: And they had a new president, and he bought into the idea that I would go over as an artist in residence.

>> Grosser: In 2002, we had an extraordinary opportunity to invite Pearl here to Coker College to be an artist in residence and actually work with students on projects.

And the garden that surrounds us is one of those projects that Pearl has been involved with.

>> Fryar: And we created this garden in there, and the students would create these designs in the classroom, and then we would take them out.

And I think the real thing was to figure out how to do what you did in the ground or to a plant.

And I think one of the most beautiful pieces I've done that we did together is a mosaic piece that stands tall.

And I think it would be more interesting to see how we actually cast that than what the piece itself.

Matter of fact, I couldn't even believe it myself.

>> Grosser: The pièce de résistance, the final project, was a sculptural piece designed by students, designed by students and based on Pearl's plants and then executed by students.

So it's a very strange-looking piece of sculpture that Pearl helped us build.

We could have never built it without him.

He had to figure out a way to cast cement around rebar.

It was quite an adventure.

And then the students really worked hard at designing the mosaic finish for that and completing it, and that's one of the high points of the garden as well.

But it's really, truly a collaboration.

But when Pearl comes, I leave, because he is a master at inspiring students, and I just get in the way when he's working.

And often, he tells me, "Just give them all A's," and I sort of roll my eyes and think to myself, Well, I'll handle that later, 'cause he really enjoys students, and they get very, very excited ♪ about working with him.

>> Female speaker: When Pearl Fryar speaks, he doesn't speak to you as if you know nothing, but he rather wants you to learn.

A lot of people have no idea what topiaries are, so he's like, "Come to my garden.

Let me teach you.

I'll come."

He came here.

All the classes here, all the art classes, have a hand in this project.

So he works with you.

He's willing to spend hours.

We spent hours working on this-- rain, cold, wind-- and he just, he doesn't just give up.

Like there were some times when projects weren't kind of going the way they were supposed to.

We ran into problems.

He's like, "It's fine.

We'll work around it."

And he's just approachable.

A lot of people do their thing, and they know they're good at it, and that's all they do.

They don't know how to reach out to others.

But he's approachable, and he's really great with teaching.

So I think that's like one of the best things, to work with somebody who knows how to get like to other people.

>> Fryar: Today, to have an opportunity to talk to today's student that's more technology-oriented, and to be coming from the old school, and to be able to show them, show how I was able to make that transition-- not totally, because I don't quite understand the technology-- but then how to take the technology and also to help make the old school work.

But I do feel like we're at that point now where you almost have to back off and give the young people their due, because this is their day.

And when you, when you incorporate too much old school into their thinking, it can also be a hinder too, you see, because you always want kids to progress.

>> Grosser: He can tie two little twigs together and see that as something that'll take form and shape over a period of eight or ten years, and I often feel like he sees in students that same kind of raw material, that potential for development, and he allows them to see that in themselves.

And it's a wonderfully self-confirming experience for the students.

The students also need to understand that things don't happen overnight, and Pearl's way of working is incremental.

And the garden you see around you, these are weeny, tiny plants when we started in 2002, and Pearl said, "Just wait, Jean.

They're gonna meet.

They're gonna make beautiful arches."

And all that is happening.

All that he said has come to pass.

And I think students themselves realize that the steps we take in life are sometimes incremental and lead to fabulous rewards, but we don't always see them the next day.

>> Spevack: He's an inspiration to me.

>> Fryar: But I mean it's that hope.

And if I can share that with anyone, especially students, and it can change their lives or it can even make them stop and think, then I love that.

♪ I enjoy that.

>> Fryar: My wife is really that real inspiration because-- well, we grew up together.

We started dating in the 7th grade.

I was 13 years old.

And we dated 13 years, and we got married at 26.

So I came in one morning and I says to her--this was after my son was probably pretty close to a year old-- and I says, "You know, I really can't figure out why you married me."

I didn't have any money.

I closed my bank account.

I think I had seven dollars in there from Upstate New York.

And I didn't have a job.

And quite naturally, we had dated 13 years, so I expected her to say to me, "Well, I was in love with you.

I couldn't see spending the rest of my life without you," the whole--I want to hear it now because I'm making as much money now as we were making together when we first got married.

So I'm sitting there waiting, and finally, she looked at me and she said, "I married you because ♪ I thought you had potential."

>> Fryar: For the first time in my life, someone that I cared a lot about thought I had something to offer.

And I mean it just, it just, it hit the right nerve.

I went for--we've been married 40, about 45 years, and she did not know what that meant to me ♪ until about 5 years ago.

>> Fryar: And to have someone think that you have more to offer, and that meant more to me at that moment than if she would have said, "I love you for all"-- she could have went through all--that moment was-- I wasn't expecting to hear that, but I needed to hear it, and it followed me till today.

And I walk through this place, ♪ and it was built on potential.

♪ ♪ >> Fryar: How many people actually have a chance to tell their story about something that they like, whether it's getting a lot of publicity or not?

Because the story to that person is important.

There are preachers standing behind pulpits every Sunday trying to get that message out.

And I just use a different form.

And I think what makes mine work is the fact that I'm no denomination.

I feel I--I mean I really feel I have a service, and I really feel I have a devoted audience, see.

But then, my message is to make you find what within you that works.

>>> It might take three years or five years, you pretty well can see what you're doing.

But I do have pieces that maybe take about seven years, ten years.

>>> My main goal in life now is--for the rest of my life-- is to make you draw from your strength.

And it's not a matter of age because in the final analysis, it's I want to be happy in my final days.

And your final days is gonna be if I make a difference-- if you walk out today and you can make a difference in any person's life, you're gonna feel good ♪ about yourself.

>> Fryar: I never thought that my culture would be so well accepted.

It's one of the reasons I get so much attention today is because my culture is really being accepted.

So I'm no longer looking at that person, that work, from an outside point of view.

It's never been important.

But today, everybody's culture important.

I mean, you can go to museums, you're gonna see Afro-American art, you're gonna see Indian art, you're gonna see... So when you bring all that culture together, then that lowers that division that's between people.

>>> And one of my goals is to give scholarships to C students, average students.

A lot of those kids have fallen through the cracks, and everybody's not gifted academically.

>>> And so that's what the garden is about.

My garden is just as big a ministry as any church in the state of South Carolina.

I don't have a building.

I have a congregation, I would say, every week of somewhere [laughter beand indistinct conversation] >> Female speaker: Okay, ♪ one more.

>> Fryar: And if you ever visit this garden, there's a message you're gonna get you will never forget.

I don't have to see you but one time.

What greater ministry is that?

>>> Do you remember Cyclops?

You remember "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey"?

>> Uh-huh.

>> Fryar: Remember the one-eyed giant?

That was a required reading I hated so bad.

[laughter] >> Fryar: So I decided to make a Cyclops.

♪ That's my one-eyed giant.

>> Law: The impact that he has had is unbelievable.

He--if you mention Bishopville or Lee County, people say, "Oh, that's where Pearl Fryar has his garden."

>> Fryar: Take a drill, and drill a little hole in here, and take a piece of-- take a coat hanger, and bend it, and take it here, and pull it straight up ♪ against here.

>> Swiger: Wow.

[laughs] Wow.

It's hard to believe that he can have accomplished what he did with the minimal starts.

He talks about starting with plants that weren't supposed to live, or tossed out, or two-dollar starts.

His creativity is just mind-boggling to me.

>> Gatewood: Just know that he's a man of intelligence.

He's a man of creativity.

He's obviously a hard worker, 'cause he told us up until four months ago, he did everything by himself, and that is just amazing when you come here, because it's got to be a couple of acres-- I don't know that exactly, but in my estimation-- and just plants everywhere.

And he's done all the work, climbed the ladders, taken the risk, bought the plants, put money and time investment in it.

So he's obviously a man of very high character.

>> He has become very successful.

And it shows that you can come from very meager backgrounds or, you know-- and be successful.

>> You know, if I want to do something, even at this age, that you can do it.

And I love the way he had that positive attitude, and I think that's real important for people, not to be down on themselves but think, Well, I can do something like that, because he has a name all over not just the United States but all over the world now of what he's done.

>> Swiger: I want to tell the story to more people and bring friends and neighbors and family back to see this.

I also want ♪ to dig into my garden.

>> Fryar: My garden is set up so that when you walk through the garden, you don't walk but so long before you're gonna see "love" or "I love you" or "Hate hurts."

The last thing that you see when you leave my garden-- the idea is to leave this garden with the message to feel differently than you did when you started-- the last thing you see before you get on the bus to leave-- I don't know if you followed me for the tour--is "love," "peace," and "goodwill."

So in a way, I'm better than the preacher from the pulpit because you preach the sermon to yourself.

I don't.

I just tell you what I have been able to do and inspire and my way of expressing what I feel and how I feel about others, and how I want you to feel about others.

♪ That's what the garden is about.

♪ >> Fryar: When you do something well, it speaks for itself.

It's--what makes a difference in life is the people you made a difference in their lives.

And love is the most powerful word in the English language.

That's the way I feel.