Worcester Magazine stated that "Flora in Winter Kicks the Snow off your Souls"...and they were right! This years Flora in Winter at the Worcester Art Museum was fabulous, and it couldn't have come at a better time! Each year, garden club members and local florists interpret works from the museums collection through floral design. Professional florists create pieces to adorn the many public spaces throughout the galleries. Flora in Winter is a well needed reprieve from the long winter. This year Beverly McClure, the owner of Floral Elegance, interpreted the "Head of Guanyin, Bodhisattva of Compassion". Bev also designed a piece for Floral Elegance's public space leading into the museum cafe'!
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| Beverly's intention with this piece was to focus primarily on the third eye, or the minds eye. She was attracted to the interesting shapes of the carved flowers, the fern curls, and braided hair. The red Amaryllis, Anthurium, Gerber daisies, and Tulips (to name a few) were striking in their color. Bev's artistic design interpreted the piece without being too literal. The clean modern form of the arrangement and intricate details were stunning, and captivated many viewers. |
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| Beverly and Nancy created these pieces which flanked the doorway leading to the museums cafe'. The predominant colors were bright purples and greens. Elegant stands held vases full of large green Cymbidium orchids, purple Dendrobium orchids, green Roses, and a variety of tropical foliage's. The base was adorned with fragrant Hyacinth, and orbs of purple moon carnations and bright green poms. Colorful wire, diamonds and floating orbs made this installation a lot of fun! |
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Virginia Orlando, a designer at Floral Elegance interpreted the "Seated Buddha in Maravijaya" (The Buddha calling the earth to witness), as well as design a piece to adorn a public space.
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| Virginia was drawn to this piece because of the Buddha's message of enlightenment and peace. She used lotus pods and flowers which are symbolic in Buddhist culture. The piece's spiraling movement represented the energy throughout the Buddha during his phase of enlightenment. The flexi-grass mimicked the Buddha's hand positions. |
Virginia's public space piece was done in a large modern pedestal and matching bowl. She used mostly Tillandsia (air plants) and succulents to create the piece. The driftwood made the piece feel very sculptural. She wanted the public to see specimens they might have never seen before, as well as create a more sustainable piece, as the plants can be transplanted!
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| Tillandsia a-glow |
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The Tower Hill Botanical Gardens in Boylston, Ma also participates in Flora in Winter. Professional florists and garden club members decide if which venue they would like to design at: The Worcester Art Museum or the Botanical Gardens. The theme this year at Tower Hill was "Moments in Time". Designers chose a certain era or moment in their own life, and created a Floral piece to coordinate with it.
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| This piece interpreted the "Art Deco" era, and the designer did a great job representing the graphic shapes so prominent in the design of the decade. |
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| This piece was done remembrance of a lost loved one. What an elegant piece to honor someone and that moment in time. The interesting container and wire adornments paired with the graceful Phalaenopsis orchid made this piece simply eye-catching. |
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| One of our favorite pieces illustrated "The Big Bang" and we think the designer did a fabulous job! You can really see the explosion! We only wish we had gotten better pics! If you didn't get a chance to make it to Flora in Winter this year, make sure you mark it on your calendar for next year! The premier floral event of the year is not to be missed! |
