Isn’t it fascinating? I have SEEN orchids for over half a century, but I’ve never really LOOKED at them. But now I am. And I immediately fell in love with a flower!

My mother loved flowers and always had fresh bouquets in the house. For her an orchid was the apotheosis of luxury, the queen of flowers. It didn’t do much for me. At the time I particularly loved autumn, with its falling coloured leaves.

The love only came very recently, when I was forced to take a closer look. That was when a number of orchid growers asked me to design a shoe inspired by the orchid. In order to experience the flower in all its aspects – to see, to feel, to smell, to watch it move – my house was promptly filled with orchids.

At first I was particularly impressed by the number of flowers. That soon changed. I got the feeling that I was not looking at the flowers, but that the flowers were watching me. I became increasingly fascinated. I looked back and suddenly saw the beauty, voluptuousness, the fascinating colours, the many different varieties and the erotic shapes of orchids. “Yes, dear. You see erotic shapes everywhere,” said my wife.

My interest only increased further when I talked to a flower specialist I know, who told me all sorts of wonderful stories, such as the one about how aristocratic ladies used orchids in the ballroom to send lascivious signals to the gentlemen present. As a result, I was constantly viewing orchids from a different perspective. And so my ideas for the orchid shoe gradually took shape.

Initially I did not dare touch the flower. It was too beautiful, too fragile, too special. That changed when I got to know her better. I felt velvet-soft petals and I knew: this has to be made of suede. And so I designed the ‘Orchid Shoe’. When the design was finished, I understood my mother immediately. The orchid is sensual, erotic, almost organic and voluptuous and it thereby really is the queen of flowers. It just took me a while to discover it…”

Jan Jansen

Schoe designer
www.janjansen.com

“Sennah Studio has now been in existence for 10 years. We design and create interiors. Thinking up things that can be done differently and better – that’s what we do.”

Creating sketches, producing drawings, attending construction meetings through to the ‘finishing touch’ with decoration and planting; we manage the process from A to Z. We have developed our own style, our lines are particularly praised. Our designs are fairly serene. The trick is to design a basis which is correct, so that you have a particularly atmosphere even without the furniture.

Whether I am designing an interior for a home or a restaurant, I think it’s important to bring nature indoors. Nothing works better to break up stark lines than a plant or orchid. Orchids are very frivolous and they are always associated with a certain standard.

We recently had the opportunity to redesign the interior of the Michelin-starred restaurant Kaatje bij de Sluis. There is one fresh white rose on every table, and there are aubergine-coloured orchids on the windowsills. Those appear to be details, but they lend a very special mood to the interior. A chunk of the experience is missing if you remove those flowers.

I will rarely include flowers or plants in a design in advance, because styling is the last thing you do. Only then can you see what the space needs. Sometimes I have a selection of flowers, plants and decoration materials brought in. Then we start applying them until we get the sense of ‘yes’!”

François Hannes
Interior architect

www.francoishannes.nl

François Hannes is passionate and driven by beauty. His style of working and design and are being appreciated by an ever-growing group of people, both nationally and internationally.

His creativity, no-nonsense attitude, commitment and architectural insight make him a top class designer.

“Working as a freelance photographer for more than 20 years, I have travelled a lot, taken a lot of portraits and photographed an awful lot of flowers. Flowers are colourful, mysterious and festive. They make me happy and it’s nice to have something beautiful in front of your lens.

For me orchids are the crème de la crème. Their beauty is almost unsurpassable. And then there are all those different species: from tiny to massive, from wild-growing to cultivated. The orchid is exorbitantly extreme in all its manifestations. Whether I’m taking a close-up of a Vanda or a Phalaenopsis, each species gives me a different feeling. The diversity of colours and varieties engenders many emotions. Which is something that music, for example, also does.

When I photograph flowers I get right up close to them and seek out the structure. Partly so that I can picture what it’ll look like when you see it full page in a magazine in due course. Never underestimate a flower! I think that every orchid contains a ‘spaceman’, wearing a kind of helmet, with two eyes, sort of mad wings and a big beak which opens. I want to get to know that ‘spaceman’.

I have been able to take 25 shots for the international press dossier about orchids that Art of Life is offering magazine and newspaper editors in various countries. The stylist and I had more than 125 species at our disposal. Orchids are so diverse and you can find so much in them that photographing them never becomes a chore. After all this time orchids still continue to genuinely surprise me and I have increasing respect for them. They have a fragile strength which makes me happy and of which I will never tire.”

Jeannine Govaers
Photographer

www.jeanninegovaers.com

Jeannine Govaers has worked as a freelance photographer for various European clients including magazines and PR agencies since 1991. She has a knack for finding the most characteristic aspects and surprising angles, which always result in singular distinctive images.

Each spring, more than 7 million flowers bloom in the garden of The Netherlands’s Keukenhof. And the 73rd edition of Keukenhof will start on Thursday 24 March 2022! The flowering park remained closed in 2020 as a result of the lockdown, and in 2021 the park was only allowed to open as a test for six days. But this year we can fully enjoy all the magic again. Are you a flower and plant lover? Then it’s definitely worth taking a trip to Keukenhof!

Keukenhof 2022

In the past 72 years Keukenhof has grown into a worldwide concept. This year, the flower exhibition will be open from March 24 to May 15. So you have more than 7 weeks to visit this spectacle of 320,000 m2 of flowers! Keukenhof displays flowers and blooming plants not only outside, but also inside. In the Beatrix Pavilion you can enjoy Orchids and Anthuriums in a surprisingly colorful decor.

Theme: Flower Classics

Every year the flower exhibition has a theme, from which the designs of the gardens and flower shows are inspired. This year, the theme will be Flower Classics. After two years of absence, the flowering park wants to return to a classic and timeless theme. It also is a reference to art. “Flowers are classic symbols used in the arts for centuries. As is apparent in several works on view at the Mauritshuis. Replicas of a number of these will be on show at Keukenhof for visitors to admire,” says director Bart Siemerink. Keukenhof will feature replicas of several paintings from the Mauritshuis, including Johannes Vermeer’s most famous painting, Girl with Pearl Earring. The impossible bouquet, consisting of flowers that all bloom at different times of the year, will also be brought to life!

Practical information

Keukenhof is open from Thursday 24 March to Sunday 15 May 2022 from 8:00 am – 7:30 pm. More information and tickets can be found on their website.

Address:
Station road 166A
2161 AM Lisse

Floriade Expo 2022 will take place from April 14 to October 9 in Almere, centrally located in The Netherlands. At this international horticulture exhibition, you can enjoy greenery and discover solutions from national and international innovators that make our cities more fun, more beautiful and more sustainable. You will also enjoy the scent and color of flowers, plants, vegetables and fruit. Floriade only takes place once every 10 years, so make sure you don’t miss it!

Activities during Floriade

To showcase the diversity of the Orchid range, we organize various activities during Floriade Expo 2022. For example, in The Green House you’ll find an Orchid Garden with an Orchid Room, that you can experience through a VR experience. On the International Day of the Orchid, Thursday September 1, girls covered in orchids will walk around, writing nice compliments for everyone! Besides that, you can take a new profile picture in front of the orchid selfie wall.

There will be various workshops and demonstrations with Orchids, where you will learn everything about it. Such as care tips, facts and different species. Do you want to attend this? Then keep an eye on the dates for the workshops and demonstrations:

• Saturday April 16 – Arranger Marloes Joore
• Saturday May 7 – Arranger Marloes Joore
• Saturday June 4 – Arranger Marloes Joore
• Thursday September 1 – Arranger Romeo Sommers

The time schedule is as follows:

10.00 – workshop 1
11.00 – demonstration 1
13.00 – workshop 2
14.00 – demonstration 2
15.00 – workshop 3
16.00 – demonstration 3

Theme: Growing Green Cities

Floriade’s theme in 2022 is Growing Green Cities. Solutions that are necessary to make cities greener, healthier and more fun are presented. A theme that is more important than ever. Because by 2050, 68% of the global population will live in cities, on just 2% of the total earth surface.

Practical information

Floriade Expo 2022 will be open daily from April 14 to October 9, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. More information and tickets can be found at the website.

“I’m never short of inspiration. A child’s toy, a tree, the spectacles that someone’s wearing; I really do get my inspiration from everywhere. Whereby the orchid is a particularly rich source.

Floral artist’ is the description that suits me best. Although I also design and write books. I travel the entire world for Pimdesigned to do that. I trained as a florist, but have never worked in a flower shop. That’s not my thing. It’s too busy for me, and too restrictive. The world is so much richer than just bouquets and floral arrangements. I want to tell a different story from a florist.

For example, I work with a chef to make shows which stimulate all the senses. I design dresses made from natural materials for that. Those creations are presented on the catwalk, and the audience are thereby given matching dishes. You see the dress and you taste the dress.

I designed one of those dresses entirely out of orchids. Simply because that plant intrigues me. I’m dyslectic and that’s a blessing in my business. It makes me strongly visually oriented and I look at shapes and materials differently. Orchids come in innumerable varieties and shapes, and yet they’re never the same. The independent beauty of every flower and of every branch fascinates me tremendously.

I have made two rules for myself. The first is: ‘I want to amaze myself every time’. And the second is: ‘I can make anything I can conceive, otherwise I would never have conceived it’. I’m bursting with ideas and I want to see all of them in front of me. But it’s a challenge to find the time to bring all that inspiration to life!”

Pim van den Akker
floral artist, designer, author

www.pimdesigned.nl

He hails from Japan, developed a lifelong passion for flowers after working at the Tokyo flower market, and is now known as a world-famous flower artist. Meet Azuma Makoto. Funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk talked to him in his flower studio Jardin des Fleurs about his life, which is all about flowers 24/7.

FLOWERS (AND ORCHIDS) AS STARS
“I don’t really see any difference between my work as an artist and as the owner of Jardin des Fleurs. My goal is to make people happy with flowers. As an artist, I try to see the potential of flowers and to share something that no one else has ever seen before. In our shop we also do everything to present flowers at their most beautiful. That’s why our shop is located in a basement where the flowers are not affected by sunlight, excessive temperatures or noise. We only wear white, black and grey clothes, because it’s not us but the flowers who are the stars.”

(Source: Azuma Makoto)

CAPTURING THE BEAUTY OF FLOWERS
“Flowers only live for 10 days  – if you compare that to human lifespan, a flower ages ten years in a day. So we only have a very short time to enjoy their beauty, and that’s why I want to capture that beauty. Literally freeze it. If you remove a flower from nature, you as an artist have a responsibility to give it meaning.”

(Source: Azuma Makoto for Hermès)

ICED FLOWERS
“You can capture that beauty of various stages. Do I stop time when the flower is still ‘young’, or do I show what ageing does to a flower? And what happens if I have flowers frozen in ice? For each flower, I explore how I can show it off to its best advantage. I reveal their beauty with technology and creativity. ‘Iced Flowers’ is a good example of that. We freeze the flowers using a special machine so that there are no bubbles in the ice. That keeps the colours of the flowers fresh.”

Azuma and his team have exhibited the Iced Flowers at shows in Japan, but also in cities such as Lille. And he showed them on the catwalk of Dries van Noten’s fashion show (summer 2017).

(Source: Funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk/Azuma Makoto)

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FLOWERS
“I also work with fashion, automobile and cosmetics brands that see flowers as a means of communication. It stimulates my creativity when I produce new work in an unfamiliar field. That’s why I enjoy that sort of collaboration. In addition, the second edition of the Encyclopedia of Flowers has just been published. I work with flowers seven days a week, and it means everything to me.”

Source: Funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk

“It’s the latest trend: collecting. And with orchids you can create a wonderful collection. Just like some people collect watches, you can also collect orchids.

Mixing large and small, variations in leaf shape and colour – the possibilities are endless. So don’t have three identical plants in a row, but five completely different ones. My comparison with watches is not a spurious one: orchids also give you a luxurious and rich feeling. And I think an orchid is always beautiful, whether you have a very expensive specimen or a cheaper variety.

I grew up surrounded by flowers and plants, trained as a master arranger and then went to art college. There you learn a different way of seeing. I use that to show people how beautiful flowers and plants are. I have felt that to be my main mission for the past thirty years: showing flowers and plants in the best possible light.
To do that, my work has included training florists and designing exhibitions in many countries. In recent years the focus has particularly been on photography for international campaigns, and I am also working a lot with film and video.

For photoshoots you sometimes need to modify a flower or plant a bit to get the right composition. You can just about get away with removing a leaf from an orchid, but I don’t think you should ever remove a flower. Because I know how much effort it takes the plant to create that flower. With a cyclamen it doesn’t matter – they have so many flowers. But for the orchid that flower is its life’s work; so you need to treat it with care and respect.

At least that’s what I think. Not everyone agrees. I remember an assignment in Iceland. It was at least twenty degrees below zero, but flowers and plants were being carried down the street completely open and exposed. Wrapping was less important; what counted was that people could see what you were bringing!”

Elize Eveleens
Stylist

Co-owner of Klimprodukties (incl. photostyling of flowers and plants)
www.klimprodukties.nl

““My prediction is that edible flowers will be the latest trend in the culinary world. An edible flower as garnish will replace the traditional sprig of parsley.

Flowers and food make a fantastic combination. It’s logical really, since in both cases you’re dealing with natural products. And with two worlds which are all about the experience.

Not everyone realises that flowers and cookery are so closely linked. I found out about it when I was working on the International Food Floral Fashion Show with floral artist Pim van den Akker and fashion designer Aziz Bekkaoui. This is a spectacle of image, light, sound and flavour in which we combine fashion, flowers, plants and food.

I made appetisers to match the most fantastic dresses, including one which incorporated orchids. You can buy edible orchids from culinary wholesalers nowadays. They make a great ingredient – comparable to firm, crispy lettuce.

The show was a great success. There were 250 guests, and a lot of international fashion and food journalists attended. But there were also ambassadors and people from the Ministry of Economic Affairs. The Netherlands is simply a world class player when it comes to flowers and plants.

I find it fun and educational to combine flowers and plants with the world of cookery. Restaurants could still greatly improve the plant and flower arrangements in their premises. This remains a neglected area. You create atmosphere and a fresh experience with plants as well. And the orchid fits perfectly into the culinary world. It still has a lot more to offer.”

Yuri Verbeek
Chef and author of cookery books

www.yuripim.nl

“As a child, I came into contact with the orchid through botanical educational illustrations. They were beautifully drawn and the shapes were breathtaking, and I wanted to draw like that too!

Once I had completed a course at the Design Academy in Eindhoven, I developed an intuitive way of working. Whether I am designing a wooden sideboard, a chair or a lamp, I love simplicity. Honestly designed products appeal to me a great deal, but I loathe sensationalist styles. And despite the industrial appearance of my designs, my aim is to give them a traditional look.

Plants create a positive change in a person’s living and working environment, and have a demonstrable effect on people’s well-being. They release oxygen, keep the air clean and increase productivity — it’s as simple as that. It is for good reason that you will find an enormous vertical wall of plants in my design studio in Den Bosch, which gives the feel of a sheltered courtyard garden. Surrounding yourself with nature is fantastic.

I lived and worked in Indonesia for a long time. In the jungle of Irian Jaya, the tiger orchid, which has a raceme of up to 3 metres in length, left an overwhelming impression on me; as did the fact that over 25.000 species of orchids grow there, and that those plants already existed 80 million years ago. Isn’t it fascinating that we still have descendants of these plants in our offices and living rooms nowadays?

The challenge in my partnership with the Art of Life project was to get the orchids off the table. Diversity of colour and the shape of the flower make the orchid extremely interesting; it is already a painting in itself. But an orchid hanging in a room is when it’s at its most beautiful. Anyway, at home I always hang orchids at eye level, as this simply makes them even more beautiful to look at.”

Roderick Vos

Designs furniture, tables, fabrics and lamps etc. For the Art of Life project, he designed an orchid holder which hangs from the ceiling on three wires (but can also stand on the table).

www.roderickvos.nl