What inspires your designs?

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Joe Mioux

Joe Mioux

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I thought it might be informative (fun)to promote a thread on inspiration of design.

What inspires your creativity in floral design?

For myself, I look at trees, wood, and buildings (my first love was Architecture).

I look at these media for design inspiration.

where do you get yours?
Joe
 
What a great idea for a thread in Flowerchat Joe. :)

I too get much of my inspiration from nature. Oddly though, sometimes the container "speaks" to me... tells me what to do... I get much satisfaction from that.

I love the beach and the woods that lead to it... I have harvested many great things along the way... including the serenity that allows the ideas to flow.

I think the most fun I had designing was for a charity event for a theatre in town. They provided heads (from hair stylists) and local florists designed arrangements around, on, in, you name it. I loved it because the imagination was allowed to soar. I had five heads to do and all of them took on a life of their own. It was great fun. And it was gratifying to know they all sold well at the auction.

Again, a great question... thanks.

V
 
Cool post Joe.

What inspires me is Dramatic and suspenseful arrangements that make people think, Ummmm what the heck?

I like doing the odd things with flowers, bend them in unusual shapes, weave bear grass through a tulip stem and then out their mouths and then back in making a tongue and connecting that tongue with another tulip(French "kissing" tulips). I stick flowers upside down under water, micro wave tulips, press them and float them thin slices of purple turnips. I like to take Char, strip the leafy part and use the red stems to swirl inside a glass container to give it a swirly peppermint affect, use magician's invisible sting to float a small message above a floating blown rose that says wisdom, I like a simplistic ikebana style that has flare, means something and can inspire. Joe I love architecture and it inspires me to build flowers up and through themselves and over into another container as an act of expression of life and taking the path less traveled. I love to experiment with all things that are natural. Plucking all the sunflower petals off makes a nice green/chocolate flower.

Ewww ewww just thought of this: Kumquats and Cranberries mixed in a bubble bowl with a single Orange gerb floating in the middle. BUT take a red gerb, pluck some of the petals and place them on top of every other petal of the orange gerb giving it a striped look.. and then popping up through the top of the gerb three small brear grass ends to give it a feeling of explosion.

What inspires me in a nut shell, is how I live life "The unexamined life is not worth living" - Socrates. And that is how I feel about the function and from of the undiscovered expressions of our choice medium, flowers.

When I look at a Rembrandt, I think, well done, but become bored, because it only tickles one of my senses. But when I look at a Mattisse, it causes me to dream and think of the possibilities. I feel the same way about floral design. 95% of the unique designs I create never sale because of what customers wants, but to me it is art, and I create art for my soul, not my customers. Thank god my wife is the sensible one, or I'd be a staving artist :)
 
Greenbacks that belong to consumers...my greatest inspiration

(Okay, so I am not a designer, OK?)
 
D... you need to go to Paris... fall in to the work at the Musee d'Orsey and the Museum of Modern Art. Your head would fill with exploding colours. Even the children's water playground in the square in front of the Modern Art Museum would make your visit worth the price.

It's a wonderful place, and while I hate sounding like a cliche... I do love Paris and it's unabashed tribute to all the senses.

V
 
Being in a city known for it's Alden B Dow (ala Frank Lloyd Wright) architecture, we derive alot of our inspiration from the clean lines and odd shapes...especially depending on delivery location, place of event and so on...

We lean toward the top end of "high style" when were "allowed" to "Do our thing" without customer intervention in design...

Also, as mentioned, nature is a huge driving force...wood, water, rock...bamboo, grass...and oh yes....flowers...
 
I was a "floral therapist" on the psych ward for 5 years before opening the shop. The flowers expresssed feelings of folks who had trouble with the words and enabled them to share thoughts and feelings.
Today nearly all of my designs have a "story". I always try to learn a bit about the person or occasion and ask for favourite color/flowers to incorporate in the designs. Most people are delighted to tell me a bit about themselves or the recip.
 
Lorrie, that sounds so cool. A floral therapist! What a perfect match. Very cool.


Hey V, when you said Musee d'Orsey it sent shivers through me. It's my favorite museum in the world. My wife and I had a chance to study abroad in Winchester England. While we were there, we skipped a lot of classes at the university and traveled all over Europe taking notes and sketching florists and floral designs. There was a florist in Paris named Fleurs Naturelle. We now have a large floral cooler that looks almost liek that florist in Paris, slate roof, copper lining and all. The side of the floral cooler has the name Fluers Naturelle on it. Some day I'll upload an image for you.

It was inspiring to see how flowers were used in Europe vs. the U.S. People over there buy flowers for them self, people on the U.S. buy them for other people. (In general) Also, because capitalism hasn't taken over Europe yet, it was nice to see the Mom and Pop shops are dominant.
 
:) I'm so glad you had the opportunity... there is nothing like travel as a tool for education and to dispell so many misconceptions about people and places. The whole of France is a glorious place with such a bent towards beautiful things... from the ground up.

I stayed with a friend while there and was able to explore a lot of neighbourhood areas (I had already done the touristy things on a previous visit). With his advice and direction I found the flower market where I spent a lot of time watching and learning and visiting. There was a shop in Amboise (Loire Valley) that not only housed fabulous flowers, but hundreds of birds and garden seeds.

I love the ability to buy a baguette, fromage, vin et fleurs as a matter of course on the way home (I was instructed that after playing all day I must at least contribute flowers to the table. ;))

I would love to see the uploaded pic of your shop... it sounds wonderful.

V
 
Archtitecture is a huge inspiration for my designs. I also get inspired by texture, color, and scents. Pods, reeds, and grasses also inspire me to create exciting clean lines within the arragement.

I am inspired by certain artists like Floral Designer Daniel Ost, Sculptor Andy Goldsworthy, and Fiber Artist Magdalena Abakanowicz. I think that the possibility of offering others a sculptural experience through the medium of flowers and foliages is endless. Mixing the media of flowers with industrial materials like metal and wire also offers endless possibilties.

I think the best designers are self taught and stray away from cookie cutter designing. Thinking outside of the box has always worked for me.
Most of the time, the clients needs and wants dictate alot of guidelines for the designs, but still give me the opportunity to create something that I am proud of. For events, the venue is a big part of the inspiration. Site specific designing is fun and inspirational. Of course, the more money they are willing to spend and the more you educate your clients, the more fun you can have. But ultimately, just knowing that your touching others lives in a very memorable way is enough for me to go the extra mile and create something other than what they are used to seeing and experiencing.
 
Welcome, Beth. :)

Hope everyone takes a look at your creative, original website. Impressive.
I think the best designers are self taught and stray away from cookie cutter designing.
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IMO, the best designers are well schooled in the craftsmanship of design. I too am a big fan of Daniel Ost as well as Gregor Lersch, Hitomi Gilliam, and many other floral artist. Those three were all classically schooled and then used their mastery of technique as the foundation, with creativity as the impetus, to propel their compositions from 'arrangements' to 'high craft.' I doubt they consider themselves self-taught since all cite influential teachers.

Since I know the benefits of have good teachers :rolleyes: just thought I'd mention this.

Regarding inspiration for design, one of my favorite phrases is from Gregor when he queries a flower or material asking, "What can you do for me?" Often times, highlighting the natural beauty of the product - the curve of a stem, the grace of a silhouette, the texture of a blossom - can be the most beneficial quality we can add to any composition; working with the materials instead of against them.

Nice idea for a thread, Joe.
 
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Regarding inspiration for design, one of my favorite phrases is from Gregor when he queries a flower or material asking, "What can you do for me?" Often times, highlighting the natural beauty of the product - the curve of a stem, the grace of a silhouette, the texture of a blossom - can be the most beneficial quality we can add to any composition; working with the materials instead of against them.

Nice idea for a thread, Joe.[/QUOTE]

I said that to a customer yesterday. They asked me how something comes to me. I just said more often than not the flowers and the container just "speak" to me. They looked at me oddly and moved on. ;) However, it's the plain truth of it.

V
 
CHR said:
Welcome, Beth. :)

Hope everyone takes a look at your creative, original website. Impressive.
IMO, the best designers are well schooled in the craftsmanship of design. I too am a big fan of Daniel Ost as well as Gregor Lersch, Hitomi Gilliam, and many other floral artist. Those three were all classically schooled and then used their mastery of technique as the foundation, with creativity as the impetus, to propel their compositions from 'arrangements' to 'high craft.' I doubt they consider themselves self-taught since all cite influential teachers.

Since I know the benefits of have good teachers :rolleyes: just thought I'd mention this.

Regarding inspiration for design, one of my favorite phrases is from Gregor when he queries a flower or material asking, "What can you do for me?" Often times, highlighting the natural beauty of the product - the curve of a stem, the grace of a silhouette, the texture of a blossom - can be the most beneficial quality we can add to any composition; working with the materials instead of against them.

Nice idea for a thread, Joe.
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CHR, I stand corrected. You are right. You got me thinking where I would be creatively without my teachers and the craftsman and artists that inspire me. Having an arsenal of technical abilities to draw from is invaluable. I guess I just find it refreshing to come across other designers who have a true passion for flowers and recognize how things grow in nature. Nature is the biggest inspiration. The famous abstract sculptor Henry Moore said, "The observation of nature is part of an artist's life, it enlarges his form [and] knowledge, keeps him fresh and from working only by formula, and feeds inspiration." ~ Henry Moore
The emphemeral quality of the work that we do can also be a source of inspiration. Think of the beauty of a decaying tree, the change of the leaves, falling petals, or a plant falling to seed. How can we, as designers, draw upon the natural processes of the materials to create striking imagry? What statements could be created from, say, sticks and petals alone?
Andy Goldsworthy has an interseting perspective on the nature of materials in his work. He says, "I enjoy the freedom of just using my hands and "found" tools--a sharp stone, the quill of a feather, thorns. I take the opportunities each day offers: if it is snowing, I work with snow, at leaf-fall it will be with leaves; a blown-over tree becomes a source of twigs and branches. I stop at a place or pick up a material because I feel that there is something to be discovered. Here is where I can learn. I want to get under the surface. When I work with a leaf, rock, stick, it is not just that material in itself, it is an opening into the processes of life within and around it. When I leave it, these processes continue.

He was recently commissioned to do a Holocaust remebrance garden at the top of a building in New York. He will hollow/bore a hole through the center of huge boulders. Saplings will be planted in the center of the mammoth rocks and eventually the trees will grow to fit the rock around it. Overtime the rock will probably overtake and start to kill the trees, but he sees this process as part of the beauty. Can you imagine what this garden will look like 100 years from now and the feelings that it would evoke for those alive to see it?
 
Thank you all for all your wonderful replies.

I hope this thread continues for awhile with new FC'rs contributions. I am really encouraged by the expertise of all of you who have replied to my thread. This is exciting!

For those of you who look to nature, especially trees, George Nakashima's classic wood book, The Soul of a Tree, dovetails right in line with our discussion here.

As I read the book, I keep refering back to floral design and the beauty of flowers.

Joe
 
CHR said:
...a big fan of Daniel Ost as well as Gregor Lersch, Hitomi Gilliam, and many other floral artist.
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Hitomi & Gregor are my two favourites :) I am not a designer, but I love their work. Gregor especially, has been a major influence in the design for in our shop for many years.

Anyone who has the chance to see Hitomi or Gregor at work, don't miss it!

Ryan
 
Beth, I love your work here: http://www.bethoreilly.net/event6.html

Explosive is what I like best. Well done. In fact, if I were a design, I would like to marry the one I linked above, if it would have me of course. It would be my luck, after I transformed myself into an epic design, she'd marry one of Gregor's arrangments. I have this affect on flowers.
 
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Dazeal, Thanks for your comments.
I'll be doing one of Gregor's workshops in July, can't wait. Maybe i could arrange a marriage between you and one of Gregor's offspring.

Anyone have any ideas on how to get an Art in Bloom or Bouquet to the Arts type program going in my neck of the woods? Or how about a floral sculpture gallery showing? Do you think a wholesaler would sponsor such an event?

p.s. Thank you to all of you on the forum for the encouragement and advice. Your probably the first to see my site, brand new and still learning the art of web design. Any suggestions will be held in the highest reagard. :) Still having issues getting ranked in google. I'm not fishing for compliments and want you all to know how inspired this thread has made me :pblush: . I've also found inspiration in some of the members linked web pages as well. Sure am glad you all are here and that i found you. This forum is a great opportunity to connect with others.
Small florists need to stick together, demand respect for their expertise, give people something they can't get anywhere else, educate, learn from each other, and most of all INSPIRE EACH OTHER!!!
 
Beth, I saw you asking for inofrmation for an art showing. I wasn't quite sure what you are trying to do, but, I might have some information on how to accomplish this.

About 10 years, ago, Hitomi an Jack Richards came to the little town where I lived and we brought in 25 AIFD designers to design an art encounter to show to the public.

We worked through a wonderful local art gallery and used their sculptures and paintings and other types of art to enhance our creations. It was written up in several of the national floral magazines at the time. Several thousand people came to view our exhibit that took about 6 six days to complete.

I think I still have information on how we organized it and how it all came to be. What a wonderful experience for everyone there.
Carol Bice
 
I'd love to see what you all did! How wonderful.
I really love Hitomi's idea taking floral arts to a level of fine art. I think this could be a viable way to get the public more involved with flowers. You know, taking flowers and foliages to a level that most of the public is not used to experiencing. Something other than vased arrangements and wrapped supermarket flowers. There may even be a way to do this were all the proceeds could benefit a myriad of local organizations. The possibilties are endless...
 
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