Flying Flowers, Planted Birds
One of the very most activating parts of putting together a concept for entertaining is incorporating elements of the natural world.. Each time I share one of my tables with you, I’ll spend some time talking about nature and how it influences my point of view. For this table, “If I Cannot Fly, Let Me Sing” I know that I’d need to evoke a sense of bursting forth. I started with the old suitcases. They were filled with some keepsakes on a shelf at home. I was determined that nature would be bursting out of a floating suitcase.
There were two complications in the process. First, I needed to wire the suitcase on my hanging rods at an angle that would both look somewhat feasible but also allow me to build a base structure for the flowers that could be hidden and also be used to create the effect of the flowers going in every direction. This. Was, Not. Easy. Thanks to my friend, Justin, the two of us were able to use chicken wire and floral wire to get a good angle. To help with the effect we added the most gestural pieces, which were the twigs and hydrangea. These bits helped create a crescent with offshoots.
I filled the center mechanics with moss and tons of dried flowers including self-dried sword ferns, strawflowers, kent beauty oregano and hydrangea heads. After coming back to it after a few days, I decided that I would mix live botanicals in with the drieds to add more energetic color. With one large potted ivy growing out of a larger suitcase and one more on a platform, I was able to clip some of the ivy, slip them in water tubes and insert them into the cloud the day I was ready to add the food and finishing touches and citrus and melon salads. In the end, I incorporated some more dried elements on the table top to balance out all the elements a bit. When all of the flowers and fruits were ready, all that was left to do was bring in the birds.
The cage and the birds are the most literal nod to the song from Sweeney Todd. I was able to get a cutie taxidermy finch and a few more feathered friends from the wonderful Jeff Bengston of Isles Studio in Minneapolis. Jeff’s store is a feast for the eyes. He has breathtaking pieces of high end home decor, taxidermy (insects and animals) and luscious textiles. He obtains his taxidermy from artists who have responsibly obtained the specimens and used their fine skills to capture the beauty of the animals when they were alive. Like other objects that I use in my work, I know that these are cherished pieces that will be displayed for their beauty for many, many decades to come.
I’m really pleased with the end result of this debut table for Warmhouse Story. As we are all students, I learned a lot in the process. To me, it displays a bursting optimism, a celebration of nature and a song of better days to come. Perhaps it will inspire you to chase a tune of your own!