Orange and pink — I continue to do battle with this combination of colors. I love orange, and I love a whole heck of a lot of plants that happen to have pink flowers. How to reconcile their disagreement? These designers didn't seem to care.
In case you're wondering here is the low-down on the AIFD...
Established in 1965, the American Institute of Floral Designers is, today, the floral industry’s leading non-profit organization dedicated to establishing, maintaining and recognizing the highest standard of professional floral design. AIFD and its worldwide accredited members are in the forefront of the industry in presenting educational design programs and in designing flowers for such renowned events as the Tournament of Roses Parade, Academy Awards and Presidential Inaugurations. They are an extraordinary group of talented artists.
The annual symposium is being held this summer in Seattle, hence their booth at the Northwest Flower & Garden Show.
I found the reliance on folded and contorted leaves a little over the top. For instance this one, it was a little too tortured. And why couldn't the Anthurium be held within the knotted Phormium leaf? Why did it need to puncture it?
Weaving and braiding.
And perfectly lovely leaves that have had this folding, bondage, technique used on them? Do you like this?
But it wasn't all about foliar torture, there were flowers to appreciate.
I was crushing heavy on those linear, feathery things. Turns out they might be the fertile fronds of Blechnum spicant? (which I only know becasue of a response to my question here)
While I was all for the mixing of edible and decorative in the floral competition displays (here) I kind of think the carrot, apple and beet (is that what the thing on the left is?) is taking it a bit too far.
And we aren't even going to talk about that orange plastic.
I'm sorry. I shouldn't be negative. I'm all for people having fun with flowers and vase arrangements.
I just felt like these were a little too, gimmicky.
But if they caught people's attention (like they caught mine, and Peter's) then they can't be all bad.
After all everyone should enjoy flowers, in whatever way they like!
With that in mind here are a few links I wanted to share. First up an article from the NY Times, "What Happened to Traditional Floral Bouquet" which looks at an entirely different (from these photos) way of using flowers. Then, also from the NYT, a look at their favorite florists on Instagram. I found a few new ones to follow.
Jennifer Jewell, who hosts the podcast "Cultivating Place" on NSPR (North State Public Radio), recently talked with Erin Benzakein, of Floret Flower Farm and the newly released book (which I'm reading right now) Cut Flower Garden. Listen to that here. For an equally interesting look at growing flowers, on a slightly less commercial scale, listen to her interview with Christin Geall, the founder of Cultivated, an urban flower farm and design studio, and a teacher of creative non-fiction at the University of British Columbia in Victoria, here.
Finally, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden, for a look at us regular old gardeners who enjoy our flowers and foliage by putting together an arrangement weekly (or so) and sharing them here.
Weather Diary, April 2: Hi 56, Low 40/ Precip 0
All material © 2009-2017 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.
You got much better pictures of the AIFD arrangements than I & I'm glad you decided to post them! Not a fan of the foliage bondage but remember seeing in a 1970's flower arranging book instructions to make a glammellia (camellia made by combining gladiola florets so torture has been around for a while. Incredible links especially the NYT. Yowsa, some gorgeous arrangements.
ReplyDeleteGlammellia!!! Ha, that's fabulous. Fabulously horrible.
DeleteYou looked at their displays much more closely than I did, and I'm so glad you took closeup photos and shared them. I love pink and orange together. I was walking past with Peter when he took the pictures he shared on his blog, and I barely remember it. I was distracted, I think, and excited. So much to see! I love the exotic flowers, but the fruit and veggies, and the tortured leaves, not so much.
ReplyDeleteEditing my photos, writing this post, and reading all the replies has me thinking more about my aversion to the pink and orange combination. I do agree with PlantPostings observation that the shade of the colors has a lot to do with how they play together.
DeleteSo funky! Referring it to bondage foliage had me giggling - some reminded me of rapper/gangster poses. Lots of attitude! The orange and pink - it's like sunset,sunrise,and rainbow sherbet all rolled together. Thanks for sharing these :D
ReplyDeleteGangster floral design, you may have hit upon an entirely new market!
DeleteI'm also not a fan of the tortured foliage, but the orange with pink works for me as long as there's some green there too. I think floral arrangements have to be experienced in person -- they lose a lot in photos (of course).
ReplyDeleteTrue that, nothing like seeing them in person.
DeleteI imagine the assignment was to make the weirdest arrangement possible, stretch the boundaries! Plant bondage may appeal to some, but I'll pass. ;)
ReplyDeleteYou're probably right about the assignment!
DeleteI've mixed feelings about the tortured leaves. I don't usually like them but I admit I was taken with the braided ones you showed. The pinks and oranges here don't bother me - they made me think of sherbet (but then lunch time is getting close).
ReplyDeleteThe braiding definitely shows skill, and I do think it has it's place. Maybe this was just too much of a good thing? (and not their fault of course, since it was a display of multiple arrangements)
DeleteI like the swag the best. I think all the tortured leaves seem so 1980s and disco or something. Especially if you are doing "IAVOM" which is all about reality. I loved hot pink and yellow or orange in the 60s and still have a fondness for that combo. But I don't ever use it much in clothes or flowers anymore.
ReplyDeleteThe swag is rather lovely, perfect for an Easter brunch.
DeleteThanks for all the links. Deborah Needlemam is a great writer; loved some of her phrasing. I just got "The Flower Workshop" book and was familiar with a few of the florists/Instagram accounts. But they also make me crazy because they grow flowers to cut; they don't have gardens as artfully designed spaces. We can never manage to recreate the kind of bouquets they make. And I love Frances Palmer but even her tiniest vases are wildly expensive. She grows flower specifically to photograph in her vases as a selling point. So, yes, a big change in attitude but nothing exactly available to regular folks. Who is going to cut lots of blooming branches off of their pale pink Star Magnolia tree? No one I know. Though I admit the vase of black Hellebores and Palmer's woodland peonies are things I may attempt.
ReplyDeleteIt would be nice to have an out of the way area to designate a cutting garden, kind of like how vegetable gardens have been segregated for years. Oh the bounty!
DeleteLuscious. And when I think about the plants and flowers in nature that have both pink and orange, I smile. I think, for me, it's the shade of the color that makes it either work or not work. And it's not always something that can be defined in words. Your photos of the delightful, too. Thanks for this bright spot in my day. :)
ReplyDeleteYou are 100% right, the shade of the colors is so important. Hot with hot, pastel with pastel. Glad you enjoyed!
Deletenot into the tortured leaves, but I have to say there is history for orange and pink-I do recall that the stewardesses(no dudes on the planes back then unless they were the pilot)of PSA in the very late 60's were decked out in hot pink and orange, as were the airplanes.What comes around,goes around.Google PSA stewardess uniforms.
ReplyDeletePink and orange and go-go boots!
DeleteYah, kind of...like poodles dyed pink.
ReplyDeleteOh my, haven't seen one of those for years!
DeleteI agree with you about the braiding and bondage. I think florists see plants as 'materials' more than gardeners do? Hard to relate. But it can turn your perceptions round a bit? Pink and yellow/orange used to be my most hated combination, now I'm starting to perceive them differently (or maybe age is making me colour-blind!)
ReplyDeleteOur eyes do age don't they? I wonder when I'm going to have to where glasses to garden! Thanks for your comment, indeed these photos and the things people have had to say are helping me to look at the combo in a different way.
DeleteOH MY GOD ! I went over to your site (for the first time in for-ever) to comment on your awesome fern table post and upon scrolling too far down and seeing this post, thought I was having some sort of weird out of body alien attack. Where to begin..... I am not a fan of the AIFD though I can appreciate some aspects of the organization. I find the organization isn't particularly relevant in 2017. Maybe if you are fresh out of high school and wanting to enter a vocational program this would be a viable option to dump tens of thousands of dollars (I think thats right).
ReplyDeleteI believe these arrangements are kind of like an episode of top chef - they have to use the materials provided and they must incorporate some kind of foliage torture - sometimes in multiples. I guess this is probably obvious - though I just thought I would mention. Likely not the choice of the designer - also very expensive and time consuming in production work. ... I could go on...
I am often a fan of pink and orange but not here :)
More jewel tones / east indian and depends on materials. I don't quite love tropicals and roses they just don't seem to go together for me. Sometimes but rarely.
Ok back to the fern tables. :)
But how do you really feel? Thanks for the comment, it did reaffirm some suspicions, and made me chuckle.
Deletethank you for the safe space for a wee rant :)
Delete.... i went back and looked at some of the arrangements - good gawd! how many things that completely do not go together can they cram into one arrangement. - also they don't have any commitment to using american grown flowers which to me is just sad really to not even acknowledge some of the real environmental - and economical issues. Seems irresponsible and for nothing.
fun to see your post though :)
They remind me of some of the getups in The Hunger Games. I always find over-the-top fun, so no complaints here.
ReplyDelete