One normally wouldn't associate flowers and cars as a go-to pairing for event design. But recently, event designers and florists have created attention-grabbing installations showcasing florals pouring out of vehicles. Depending on the theme of the event, designers have been both subtle and over-the-top with the floral presentations, which have made appearances at events such as boozy festivals, fashion conferences, and TV series premieres.
Here's a look at some new and notable examples of the Instagram-friendly design trend.
Brooklyn-based experiential design agency the Gathery partnered with floral design company Ellen Robin Creative to create an installation for HBO’s Sharp Objects screening event, which took place at the Bowery Hotel in New York in June. Inspired by the mystery drama series, a Ford Crown Victoria covered in floral green wallpaper vinyl was placed outside of the venue, with a backdrop of green branded caution tape.
“I wanted nice green as a base, so I chose Camellia branches for their color, lushness, and nice leaf shape, and smilax vine for that draping quality,” said Ellen Robin, founder of Ellen Robin Creative. “After that, I wanted to bring to life the peach, dusty rose, and cream color story, so I centered on roses of many colors, from quicksand to tiffany, and some really gorgeous beige and dust pink-toned carnations.”
“The natural tones balance the peach and pinks really nicely. I used peonies for a luxe add and the color pop of the brighter frozen raspberry, then added delphiniums and eremurus for height,” added Robin. “Lastly, Virginia creeper and grapevine added texture and dimension for that overgrown, creeping garden look.”
A more subtle installation appeared at a decadence-theme dinner for event planners and media, which was hosted by Tinsel Experiential Design, Comparti Catering, and Ceci New York at the Altman Building in New York in June. The event showcased a 1991 Jaguar, owned by Comparti Catering co-founder Mac Osborne. The car was filled with tree peonies, lisianthus, garden roses, and quicksand roses.
In June, PHD Terrace at Dream Midtown hotel in New York set the tone for its Amalfi coast-inspired Aperitivo Tuesdays—a weekly happy series—with a pop-up car installation that featured a limited-edition ’84 Alfa Romeo Spider parked curbside. The vintage vehicle, which was provided by the Tao Group, was hand-painted with illustrations inspired by small Italian towns and culinary landmarks like Da Adolfo and Ristorante La Fontelina. The back seat of the vehicle was filled with greenery and lemons. The installation was conceptualized by Yvonne Najor, director of outreach and sponsorships of food and beverage for Dream Midtown and Dream Downtown. Artist Jenevieve Penk designed the installation.
For the launch party for Tiffany & Co.’s Paper Flowers collection, which took place in May at its flagship store and other locations in New York, a vehicle in the brand’s signature blue color featured a variety of florals that popped out of the hood. The florals, arranged by Angel Salazar Design, were French tulips, coral charm peonies, hanging amaranths, purple lilac, white delphiniums, green viburnum, garden roses, pear blossoms, gloriosa lilies, paper grass, and yellow solidago. The event was designed by Mission, while Levy NYC Design & Production handled lighting, audio, and video.
For the inaugural Rosé Day L.A., which took place in June at Saddlerock Ranch in Malibu, California, 1iota Productions and Event Eleven partnered to produce a rosé-theme festival with numerous Instagram-friendly installations. A Moët & Chandon-branded Airstream trailer had pink and red florals cascading out of the windows. Floral Crush Studio provided flowers for the event.
Women’s clothing brand Agnes & Dora’s annual design convention in July 2017 had a Woodstock-inspired “bloom” theme, which tied into the brand’s colorful, flowery clothing. The event, which was held at the South Towne Expo Center in Salt Lake City, had a vintage VW bug with a floral installation by the Flower Affair.
