The famed Philadelphia Flower Show, which took place outside in FDR Park for two years, will return inside on March 4, 2023, this time around. In order to ensure the safety of attendees and exhibitors, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS) artistic director Seth Pearsoll and the other show organizers decided to move the festival outside in 2021 and 2022 due to the ongoing epidemic and ensuing obligatory social distancing measures. The “Habitat” and “In Full Bloom” themes of those outdoor activities emphasized the advantages of gardening and spending time in nature for both physical and emotional well-being.
Pearsoll claims that his intention for those two programs was to provide a “calm and serene” gathering in the middle of the pandemonium caused by COVID-19. He wants things to be different this year. The Philadelphia Flower Show’s theme this year is “The Garden Electric,” which Pearsoll describes as a livelier, more vibrant, festive concept that invites guests to enjoy themselves amid flower gardens with whimsical and colorful bursts.
“We were trying to look at what gardens and horticulture could be for people at that current time, and the flower show presented two themes in our outdoor run that were very calming and tranquil, focused on mental health and on a connection with nature,” says Pearsoll. “I believe that an event needs to be responsive to the world that it lives in.” You have two shows that are soothing, serene, restorative, and palliative. However, not every occasion can be so quiet and muted. We wanted something bold, provocative, joyful, and exuberant for this return of the event to the indoor arena.
Pearsoll and the PHS team planned to bring big improvements to the event with its return to the Pennsylvania Convention Center. They used the lessons gained from the outdoor festival and completely redesigned the Philadelphia Flower event’s main gardens and layout. The 10,000 square foot entry garden will be covered in a “mesh scrim,” according to Pearsoll, a semitransparent material that will give the space a cloaked, enclosed atmosphere as opposed to the typical open-plan garden we see at the exhibition.
“Once you pass through this illuminated little tunnel, you’re in this beautiful, magical garden world,” Pearsoll adds. “As you enter this glowing light tunnel, all white on the outside, totally covered up.” “There are floral sculptures emerging from these garden beds, a massive floral canopy above, and a massive floral wall that is 20 feet tall that leads visitors through the middle of the display,” the show coordinator said. It simply involves complete absorption in flowers and gardens.
A Look Ahead at the Philadelphia Flower Show in 2023
Originally a “choose your own adventure” event, the festival is now more of a guided tour including a “winding promenade,” according to Pearsoll, that winds around the convention center, stopping at each highlighted garden created by exhibitors from all over the nation. There will be up to 3,000 square foot gardens built by many exhibition designers for the first time in the history of the event.
Iftikhar Ahmed, the owner and creator of Treeline Designz, is one of these designers. He will use locally produced plants and flowers to create a 3,000-square-foot show that honors “children of war,” especially the children who are suffering in Ukraine right now. Ahmed claims that the 6-year-old daughter of his Ukrainian friend gave him the idea to create a forest-themed garden with moss, water, plants, and lighting. The girl would venture into the woods in search of “the peace fairy,” an illusory creature her grandmother claimed would shield her from the chaos of war. Ahmed is going to build the fairy’s home among the flowers and plants.
About his artwork, Ahmed says, “I would like to pay tribute to the children of war throughout the world because things are happening and nobody talks about the children out there suffering and dying.” “The children become ill and are taken from their homes.” Either their parents pass away or they never see them. All these things cause a great deal of suffering. After giving it some consideration, I decided to “Okay, let’s create that garden.”
Ill Exotics, headed by Franco Franchina and Chris Urban, is another exhibitor at the expo. Their 850-square-foot display will be a direct reflection of the concept of “The Garden Electric.” The two are building an installation reminiscent of Studio 54 that pays tribute to Manhattan’s disco scene from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. Mannequins will be outfitted with flowers, moss, and plants to give the impression that they are having a great time dancing. The “dance floor” will be a platform of foggy water that will give the impression that you are dancing on clouds, and the “DJ Booth” will be a 160-gallon aquatic tank filled with water and living aquatic plants.
According to Urban, it’s all about that electrifying feeling you get from connecting with nature. “We turned it into the electrifying experience of dancing on the dance floor. We’re doing a Studio 54 version that has been overtaken by the jungle.
Additionally, the 2023 Philadelphia Flower Show will be the first time an exhibit designed by a Black team of designers. Black Girl Florists Network, an organization, will invite around twelve Black women from throughout the nation to participate in creating a 600-square-foot installation.
According to Valerie Cristostomo, president and CEO of Black Girl Florists, their installation will adhere to the concept by using vibrant flowers, towering trees, and sparkling lights.
“I’m more pleased than anything else. I’m really appreciative of PHS and the chance we have to demonstrate our abilities. In terms of representation, I believe it’s a positive move, claims Cristostomo. “I believe that people are aware that there are Black florists in the floral industry, but they may not be aware that our representation in the industry is less than 2%.”
The Philadelphia Flower Show will include award-winning plant specimens in its newly consolidated PHS Hamilton Horticourt and its usual marketplace area with prominent exhibitors in addition to the highlighted displays. Throughout the event, attendees may browse competing exhibits in several categories, including windowsill decorating, doorway decoration, miniature floral design, flower arrangements, pressed plants, botanical jewelry, and more.
The event will also be enhanced by musical performances by groups including SNACKTIME, DJ Aktive, RECPhilly, Zeek Burse, Philadelphia School District kids, and more. The concert this year will be audacious, thrilling, and novel all around. Tickets are available right now on the PHS website.