“Millennials love plants” – announced “The New York Times” in 2018. A generation that changes their place of residence several times during their lives needs something that will make them feel at home. This botanical trend has been reflected in literature, art and design.
It seems that today the plant motifs surround us. Garden and greenery fairs have become important events in our calendar. At weekends, instead of a fashionable restaurant, friends go to the opening of a new florist’s, while monstera has become an obligatory element of the apartment’s decoration. Where does this sudden interest in vegetation come from? Some associate it with the zero-waste trend and turn to ecology. Others point to vintage fashion – flower beds, which were designed in the communist era in Poland, are now very popular. Living in industrial, often overcrowded cities also arouses irresistible longing for a return to nature.
BOTANICAL INSPIRATIONS
An artist immensely inspired by nature is Margo Hupert, who is also an author of botanical posters, cards, graphics and calendars. It is also worth to pay attention to the world-inspired flora and fauna works of Bożka Rydlewska, a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts in Kraków and Högskolan for Design och Konsthantverk in Gothenburg. The artist has collaborated, among others, with the magazine “KUKBUK” and TVP Kultura, and her works are presented at exhibitions in Poland and abroad. Sebastian Kulis, a plants passionate from Gdańsk and the author of the “Roślinne porady” (Tips on plants) website, in 2017 started cooperating with the Polish Animal Kingdom brand. Together, they created a collection of plant brooches representing meadow flowers and vegetables such as onions or beetroots. Also popular are the botanical posters announcing the Festival of Flowers – a cyclical event organized by the magazine “Usta” and the Warsaw department store Mysia 3. Equally important, as the plants themselves, are designer products useful in domestic breeding. GrowRaw brand offers minimalist, concrete flower pots that perfectly blend in with succulents. Modern and stylish wall hanging flowerbeds or flower pot stands are the specialty of the Bujnie design studio and manufactory.
PLANT LIBRARY
The growing popularity of the botanical trend results in that more and more people have started to seek professional information on how to cultivate their favorite Tradescantia or Ficus. Publishing houses responded quickly to these needs. One of the most well-known and valued publications are the books “O kwiatach” (About flowers) and “O roślinach” (About plants). The authors – Radosław Berent and Łukasz Marcinkowski – are the owners of the famous Poznań florist shop called Kwiaty & Miut. It is also worth to read the “Projekt Rośliny” (Plants Project) guide. Weronika Muszkieta and Ola Sienko run a shop with plants at Świętokrzyska Street in Wrocław and arrange green interiors. They tell their clients what plants to decide on and how to care for them.
GREEN OFFICE
Biophilic design trend is more and more often used when arranging office space. Research conducted within the framework of ecological psychology trend (the so-called ecopsychology) confirms that contact with nature has a positive effect on our psychophysical health. Interestingly, it was found that not only nature itself brings tangible benefits, but also its imitation, for example a picture with a floral motif. In other words, if you want to work more efficiently, creatively and willingly, surround yourself with vegetation and natural materials. An example of a successful cooperation on the business-nature line are the projects implemented by the Kraków company MOSS decor, offering walls and paintings of live plants. A professional team of landscape architects, florists, artists and gardeners creates unique works using natural moss and lichen from the forests of northern Scandinavia. The effects of their operation can be admired, among others, in the Galicya restaurant at Kraków Airport. Flore Studio duo also deals with the greening of offices. Alicja and Paulina work in Kraków – they not only provide selected plants, but also take care of them.