Orinda Garden Club member Marie Tischenko created a floral tribute to Hans Hoffmann’s Still Life with Fruit and Coffeepot, inspired by his planes of bold color and geometric line.
The creations of four Orinda floral designers shared a world-class stage last month when thousands of people streamed through the de Young Museums 35th Anniversary Bouquets to Art (BTA) exhibit.
The success of the event, which took place June 4-9, is due in part to its creative challenge: floral artists from far and wide are invited to peruse the museum’s permanent collection and create a floral interpretation of the artwork that sparks their interest. According to Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF) Communications Associate Shaquille Heath, 48,000 people visited BTA in 2018.
It all began at the de Young in 1985 with 45 exhibitors who chose 46 artworks (one designer chose two) to create inspired floral arrangements referential to the artwork. In 2019, there were 115 floral artists, including the three from the Orinda Garden Club (OGC). The late Dee Seifert not only initiated OGC’s involvement in the event 35 years ago but participated in it herself.
Phoebe Kahl and Diana Kennedy chose to create a floral design to complement Wayne Thiebaud’s Hill Street (1987) because of its subject, colors and luminescence in Gallery 14.
Gail Emmons’ floral design interprets the forms incised in Petroglyph, a 2nd century AD artifact in Gallery 20.
Mari Tischenko’s angular design bursting with color was inspired by Hans Hoffmann’s Still Life with Fruit and Coffeepot (1940).
“One of my favorite aspects of the Bouquets to Art is digesting, studying, feeling the art piece that I am given. I love to learn everything I can about the artist,” says Tischenko. “I then enjoy isolating key parts of the piece — zeroing in on specific lines, color, spatial compositions. I try to deconstruct the paintings and then use those parts to translate into my own floral interpretation.”
Proceeds from the event help underwrite exhibitions, conservation and education projects at FAMSF. It is presented by the San Francisco Auxiliary of the Fine Arts Museums. The de Young Museum is in Golden Gate Park, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive, San Francisco. Learn more at https://deyoung.famsf.org/bouquets-to-art.
Natasha Lisitsa and Daniel Schultz created Eclipse, a 14 foot in diameter orb they say contains 10,000 flowers and weighs 1200 lbs. It was on display in the de Young’s Wilsey Court for the 35th annual Bouquets to Art exhibit. They are known for the heroic scale of their architectural design style and innovative materials.
The view from below Natasha Lisitsa and Daniel Schultz's Eclipse, a 14 foot in diameter orb they say contains 10,000 flowers and weighs 1200 lbs.
Orinda Garden Club member Gail Emmons created a floral tribute inspired by Petroglyph from the second century AD. Her arrangement was part of the 35th annual Bouquets to Art exhibit at the de Young Museum held June 3 to 9.
Orinda Garden Club Members Phoebe Kahl and Diana Kennedy have enjoyed working in tandem to create their Bouquets to Art floral arrangement to complement Wayne Thiebaud’s Hill Street (1987). They chose Thiebaud’s piece because of its subjects, colors and luminescence. The annual exhibit was held at the de Young Museum in early June.
