Written by Susanne Law, AIFD | Photos by Colin Gilliam Photography + Design
BURNABY BLOOMS, in the beautiful City of Burnaby, B.C., Canada, was celebrated throughout the month of May this year. This progressive city loves to bring flowers and outdoor programs into their parks, inviting communities to join in all the festivities. It was the perfect way to celebrate Mother’s Day weekend!
As part of the celebration, Hitomi Gilliam, AIFD, collaborated with the City of Burnaby and the Eco Sculpture and Park committees to formulate plans to flower an outdoor walkway at Shadbolt Center for the Arts, and individual Eco Sculptures.
Team Hitomi, including Brenna Quan, AIFD and myself, along with numerous City of Burnaby workers and community volunteers worked together to complete these two projects.
The City of Burnaby believes in Eco Awareness and Education and with Hitomi, planned the installation with no floral foam. As written by Hitomi, “The mechanics are easy to install and dismantle with 100% REUSE in mind. The structures that held the mechanics were crafted from the prunings from the city crew. Chicken wire rolls with light Podocarpus filling were held together with bongo ties made with woody rose stem clippings, easy to take apart for next use. Rose, allium, agapanthus and stock were water-tubed (they will be saved for REUSE), and other short stems were free stemmed into the chickenwire rolls. A handful of zip ties are the only item to go to the landfill. We will find a better REUSEABLE alternative next time (maybe metal cable tightening device). Last but not the least…DETAILS…adding artistry and intrigue…covering up mechanics…it’s our flower magic!!!”
Brenna and myself were tasked with concepts for the City of Burnaby Eco Sculptures which included a caterpillar, a bee, a spider, a bug and a butterfly. The sculptures are shaped from a metal frame that houses soil/growing medium, covered with a protective mesh. These sculptures are usually embedded with live plants and make a gorgeous display throughout the city.
Instead, we needed to dress these Eco Sculpture creatures with flowers. This allowed for a multitude of textures, colors and flower varieties. With the support of an amazing team of Eco Sculpture staff, and our good friend Shirley, a flower grower and designer, they provided the helping hands needed to complete the many, many flower insertions. A punching tool, similar to an awl, was used to create a hole in the mesh to” plant” the individual blooms into the growing medium. A good watering keeps the blooms nicely hydrated. These creatures were brought to life with floral patterns and 3-D forms such as wings, mohawks and headdresses giving them their personalities. We were thrilled with the results!
We wish everyone could have experienced Burnaby Blooms in person. We were very fortunate to have Colin Gilliam capture these beautiful images to share with us. FLOWERING the community blooms happiness! Looking forward to the next opportunity.
