Events

Gold Medal Floral Design

By
Debra Prinzing
Posted
June 6, 2019
Gold Medal Floral Design

The FTD World Cup, staged March 1-3 at the Philadelphia Flower Show, is an international floral competition held approximately every four to six years around the globe. Representatives from 23 countries competed in the world-class event, held in the U.S. for the first time since 1985, when it took place in Detroit.

 

“Floral-forward inspiration displayed by the world’s top floral artists.”

 

The exciting brass geometry complements delicate ferns and orchids, designed by Denmark’s Kristine Gudiksen.

Copper piping forms a strong, linear grid for tropical flowers, designed by Hans Zijlstra of the Netherlands.

Rings of hammered metal present an old-world patina, enhancing delicate stems and blooms, designed by Spain’s Lina Roig.

Loose and transparent placement of long graceful stems transform wispy elements into a stunning bouquet, designed by Norway’s Elin Susan Havreberg.

Airy and meadowlike, this bouquet highlights grasses, fronds and delicate blooms, designed by Sweden’s Sofie Danielsson Söhr.

Eye-catching vines and tendrils infuse this bold bouquet with energy and verve, designed by Germany’s Stephan Triebe.

Each ornamental glass vessel, suspended from a sculptural framework, holds a luxurious Gloriosa lily stem, designed by Italy’s Vincenzo Antonuccio.

Narrow tubes painted in soft hues are color-coordinated with the pastel petals selected by Pirjo Koppi of Finland.

The repetition of vertical branches and upright stems communicate an engaging rhythm in a dynamic installation from Mexico’s Leopoldo Gómez.

A brilliant bouquet is supported by an interlocking “nest” of colorful twig dogwood, designed by Spain’s Lina Roig.

Russia’s Natalia Zhizhko’s horizontal branch structure is threaded with flowers and foliage for a modern take on a centerpiece.

Kelvin Lee, of Chinese Taipei, wove an organic centerpiece supported by contorted willow branches.

World Cup champion Bart Hassam, of Australia, relies on tropical foliage shapes to define his stunning composition.

Russia’s Natalia Zhizhko, first runner-up, uses bold foliage to create a sense of scale in her design.

Wei Yao, of China, a semifinalist, uses broad, textured foliage to define the lines of his composition.

“It is said to be the ‘Olympics of Floral Design’ and is regarded as a career-defining competition since the winner is extremely sought after for demonstrations, presentations and workshops throughout the world,” says Emily Bucholz, director of marketing communications, FTD Florist Division. “Our goals were to unite the international floral community in our great nation and introduce our North American florists to the incredible floral design talent throughout the world.”

Over three days, on a public stage witnessed by the floral community and tens of thousands of flower-show-goers, competitors produced the profession’s best expression of their craft, each one a national winner in his or her own right. Their level of floral artistry, precise execution of technique and highly personal interpretation of six distinct design challenges was a delight to watch.

Australia’s Bart Hassam was named the 2019 World Cup Champion at the conclusion of the three-day competition. Other winners included first runner-up Natalia Zhizhko from Russia and second runner-up Tamás Mezöffy from Hungary.

Covering the FTD World Cup gave me a front-row seat to watch each of the competitors whose unique and inventive floral pieces elevate the art of floral design. There are countless ideas from which to draw inspiration. Here are the freshest floral ideas to borrow for your floral department.

MODERN METALS

Shiny steel, glowing copper and brass, and hammered zinc offer organic elemental finishes for a stunning contrast to fresh flowers and foliages. The designs shown here were created for the first World Cup challenge, “Harmony in Architecture.”

DANCE AND MOVEMENT

Botanical ingredients harvested from the meadow and field lend a kinetic quality to singular and stunning hand-tied bouquets. The designs shown here were created for the second World Cup challenge, “Hand-Tied Bouquet – Strength of Color.”

SHOWCASING INDIVIDUAL STEMS

Single stems arranged together create patterns that enliven floral compositions. The World Cup designers used numerous inventive ways to gather, group and hang individual flower and foliage stems into a greater whole, created for the third World Cup challenge, “Table for Two – The Power of Flowers.”

TWIGS AND BRANCHES

Branches in many colors and configurations can provide the structural context for floral design, illustrated by the fourth World Cup challenge, “Season of Bloom,” using U.S.-grown botanicals supplied by Certified American Grown Flowers.

BOLD FORMS WITH FOLIAGE

Drawing from the symbolism of a tree, the World Cup’s 10 semifinalists were tasked with designing pieces that expressed personal strength and growth. Their use of bold foliages and forms produced dramatic results.