Did you visit the
Philadelphia Flower Show this year? My mother and I visited mid-week and took part in the Wedding Wednesday activities. We turned out trip into an all-day affair and made sure to see every aspect of the show.
This year’s Flower Show theme was “ART-iculture”. The best was I can think to describe it is to say “it was ‘different’.” The displays weren’t was catchy and enchanting as past years, but they were interesting - to say the least. There were big displays as well as some smaller, more detailed ones.
The acrobatic dance performance on the Calder-inspired entry piece was neat. I enjoyed the array of flowers used to create the primary colored exhibit. A spectator in front of us during a performance said about the performance, “Ah. They aren’t Cirque de Sole, but they’re alright, I guess.” My mother and I couldn’t have agreed more!
I enjoyed the standout exhibits; interpretations of Monet and Mondrian. There were many talented painters, textile artists, and illustrators represented in correlation with the flowers. The interpretation between the representations of noted artists and the flower arrangements was really neat. Philadelphia-area art students displays were a great asset. Its always neat to see how a younger generation views classic art and different cultures.
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Glass plates created by Berlin artist, Jeffrey Auxer, were on display in a garden exhibit.[/caption]
The market place was huge! There were some really neat gardening accessories, some over-priced items that you can find at any garden retail store, a few stands selling fresh-cut flowers, and lots of other random things. I took home a few momentos and did enjoy walking through the aisles looking for inspiration.
My favorite part of the entire show? The Butterfly Experience. We were able to walk right in (no lines!) and not only see the butterflies, but even interact with and feed them. There were more than 24 different breeds of butterflies and they were surprisingly active. Some of the overfed, over handled, and over stimulated butterflies were placed in a ‘time out area’ by someone working the exhibit while new butterflies crawled out of their cocoons on the opposite side of the exhibit. Never have I ever held a butterfly on my nose until last week.
I filled myself with so many cupcakes, cake pops, and macaroons from the Wedding Wednesday show that I had to refuse free samples by the time we walked down the 3rd row of vendors. As a florist, I love attending wedding shows to gather ideas, see what other vendors are doing, and stay up-to-date with current trends.
Thanks for attending the show with me, Mom. It was nice to get away for a few days and spend time with you.
What were your thoughts about the
Philadelphia Flower Show? Are you looking forward to next year’s show already?
- Ami
