RHS Chelsea Flower Show - Creative Spaces

Su Whale
May 28
2 min read

‘A laboratory of blooms exploring the connections between science and art’

This was an opportunity for floral designers and artists to be able to spread their creative wings, and the theme certainly gave them plenty of scope to present flora, plants and fungi in a challenging but also perceptive way. This category is not judged for medals but one display is chosen for an award by the RHS Floristry Ambassadors, Simon Lycett and Nikki Chapman.

RHS Floristry Ambassadors Award

OF A GARDEN: Slow Dream Of A (in collaboration with Wagner Kreusch & Frida Kim)

Bold in shape, concept and design, this was a futuristic garden reimaged as a living, sculptural form. Growing vertically from a landscape of Icelandic volcanic rock and charred plant material, flowers were used sparingly, such as a single, blue Meconopsis poppy flowering against a moody black background, giving the display just the slightest touch of colour. The regeneration of plant material after fire was used to illustrate how nature is able to constantly renew itself.

Chlorophyll: The Colour of Life Acacia Creative Studio

Acacia Creative Studio have brought a number of thought provoking and innovative displays to Chelsea and 2026 was no exception. This giant structure that towered over visitors and which they were able to walk underneath and explore, took them on a journey through a plants process of growth through photosynthesis. This was achieved with four interconnecting parts, which flowed seamlessly one from to the other; from green roots to lush growth to full flowering and then eventual decay.

Enmeshed: Positive Pathways Dimitris Koutroumpas X Gaia Eros Florals

The incredible way that plants communicate with each other was the central theme here, with British woodland flora and fungi planted into a base edged by upcycled circuitry, echoing how the mycelium of mushrooms, or the ‘wood-wide web’ forms an invisible pathway under our feet. Visitors were able to actually listen to the sound of plants talking to each other via an interactive sound installation created by biogenic composer Alex H Duncan.

Su Whale is a florist and freelance writer with over Thirty years' experience in the floristry industry. She is the author and publisher of three best-selling books: Cut Flowers, 4th edition (2020) Cut Foliage, 2nd Edition, (2021) and Houseplants (2019), all bookshelf essentials for the professional florist.