Constance Spry in Flower Mag

Catching up on some reading, I came across an article about the amazing British florist Constance Spry in Flower Magazine. This issue happens to be the 5th anniversary issue, so it has lots of good things in it. Fortunately, the Spry article is available on-line. She was known for breaking British floral design out of the Victorian mold, and she created floral designs for many prestigious occasions, including the wedding of Wallis Simpson and the Duke of Windsor, and the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. Her life was quite a journey... a fascinating story. See the article and more photos at Flower Magazine.

New Flyer for the Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers tour, which features tours of 6 different greenhouses. Kitayama Brothers open house includes a design competition for pros & students, a farmer's market, tours and wine tasting. See the KB site for maps and more information.

AIFD AIR in CCSF Currents

The City College of San Francisco newsletter, Currents, did a nice write up on the AIFD Artist in Residence event. Thanks to everyone! It was a fun and interesting event.

Kitayama Open House and Competition

On June 16th, the 3rd annual Monterey Bay Greenhouse Growers Open House will be held in Watsonville. Kitayama Brothers open house will feature greenhouse tours, a farmer's market, information about Santa Cruz State Parks (the open house is a benefit for them), wine tasting, and the Kitayama Cup floral design competition.

This year's competition includes a "young professionals" category, with cash prizes and all kinds of fun. It's the weekend of my birthday, so I'm looking forward to celebrating in sunny Watsonville with lots of interesting people.

Info about the event (includes contest guidelines) | Jenny Tabarracci's blog

Breathing Flower at SF Civic Center

Choi Jeong Hwa's Breathing Flower at the Civic Center
Plaza across from the Asian Art Museum. Photo by Kim Munson.

Was headed to the SF Public Library yesterday, and was blown away by Choi Jeong Hwa's 24 foot sculpture Breathing Flower, which is on display in the Civic Center Plaza across from the Asian Art Museum as part of the Phantoms of Asia exhibition. Read more about it at SFGate.