FLORAL ARIST HARRIET PARRY
Harriet
Parry
Floral artist, fine art graduate, former interior stylist. She approaches every arrangement as a painting. Flowers are her medium.
"I like to think that flowers are my medium, just as a painter uses their paint on a canvas. I look at how each stem and bloom hold themselves, and how they interact with the others: almost like characters in a scene."
Before discovering her unique flair for floristry, Harriet Parry worked as an interior stylist. It was there, throwing fake flowers into design schemes, that the seed was sown. She moved to London, applied for a floral designer role that allowed her to learn on the job, and launched her own practice, which now spans weddings and events, editorial projects, brand collaborations, and the quietly beautiful side project of painting miniature watercolour portraits of brides' bouquets for their first wedding anniversaries.
She approaches floral design as if she is making a painting. Texture, shape, colour, overall aesthetic. She loves unusual and surprising varieties of flowers and foliage alongside props, fabrics and objects that might not ordinarily be put together. She looks for unusual shapes, lines and patterns: the way a petal may fall, a certain bend in a stem. She wants viewers to spot something new each time they look. Her grandmother's garden started all of it.
My work is heavily influenced by contemporary and historical art, film, fashion and design. I come from a Fine Art background, so I combine this with my love of the natural world. I can also be inspired by a moment in my day, a pattern, a time in history, a poem, music or even a scent. Inspiration can come from the most unexpected places.
I also love collaborating with creatives from different disciplines. People are a very important source of inspiration. I always say flowers and people make the world go round. The biggest inspiration for me at the beginning of my floristry career was my Granny. She had such a beautiful garden and encouraged my love of flowers from a very early age.
I approach my floral designs as if they are paintings. I love to use unusual and surprising varieties of flowers and foliage, as well as props, fabrics and objects: florals and other ingredients that may not always be put together. This adds a really playful element to my work.
When creating, I look for unusual shapes, lines and patterns in my flowers and foliage. The way a petal may fall or a certain bend in the stem. I look at how each stem and bloom hold themselves, and how they interact with the others: almost like characters in a scene. I suppose creating is like nature. It has no concerns about how it develops and grows or what it produces. It just is.
"I want my viewers to spot something new each time they look at my work, as well as having a deeper concept or a sense of something unexpected and uncanny."
Harriet ParryTechnology allows me to keep experimenting, be innovative and express myself and my medium of flowers in new ways. I also love to create spaces and designs that are immersive, often working with sound artists or visual artists to create another layer alongside my florals. I am in the process of gathering ideas for an abstract floral film, working alongside a sound artist to create a soundscape for a surreal and experimental piece of work. A flowery visual escape.
Wellbeing to me means balance. We too often live life out of balance, putting our energies into one area and neglecting time for our other needs. Life is all about equilibrium. You have many different cups that need to be filled in order to feel in tune with yourself, others and your surroundings. We are all connected and need to support each other to create a sense of wellbeing, harmony and balance.
This is how fashion should be: sustainable, ethical and conscious. We should all be doing our bit to steer away from fast fashion. There are so many wonderful brands that use organic and natural fabrics, or create from dead stock and recycled garments, and who support fair trade. By making a more considered choice and buying from independent designers and small businesses who create quality clothing designed to be treasured, with a longer life cycle, we are all doing our bit to help save this beautiful planet.
But until the biggest, more trend-driven producers take the lead and stop producing so quickly so many garments, and consumers stop following so many seasonal trends, we have a way to go.
Flowers and flora in contemporary art and culture: a blossoming exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery.
Another Antakly Projects encounter with a floral artist whose practice sits at the meeting point of nature and contemporary art.
Artist spotlight on Elizabeth Barlow and her practice in the natural world.
Nature is her inspiration: Vivienne Schadinsky on the natural world as the source of all creative practice.
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✦ Explore all our interviews →"Flowers and people make the world go round."
More art, nature and cultural commentary from Leila Antakly on Substack.
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