Remco van Vliet will be at the VMFA Friday, Oct. 26, for a lecture and workshop. (Photo courtesy Van Vliet & Trap Event Design)
For Remco van Vliet, a passion for flowers runs in the family. A third-generation florist from the Netherlands, he’ll be sharing his expertise at “Fine Arts & Flowers,” an exhibition at Virginia Museum of Fine Arts that pairs interpretive floral arrangements with works from the museum’s permanent collection, to be held Oct. 24-28.
In addition to owning Van Vliet & Trap Event Design with his brother Cas Trap, van Vliet is the creative genius behind the towering arrangements of fresh flowers that adorn the Great Hall at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. The tradition of weekly flowers in perpetuity was established through an endowment by the late Lila Acheson Wallace, first undertaken by museum special events director Chris Giftos, under whom van Vliet apprenticed before assuming the role himself in 2003.
These displays are meant to provide, as van Vliet says, “a kiss hello” to visitors and employees alike. Van Vliet talks about arranging in this scale and why flowers are an important part of any decor.
R•HOME: What’s your inspiration behind the weekly arrangements at the Met?
Van Vliet: In the weeks leading up, sometimes months or even a year before, we already have contact with our suppliers. There’s a lot of thought and scheduling involved. … Anything that you place in these arrangements [calls for] tall branches or flowers. … We do a lot of branches en masse, so it looks very showy and happy. Bigger is better — a very American thing. Especially in a space that is all stone and austere, it’s good to have nature overpower it a little bit.
There’s one thing I always try to do … one thing I’m very aware of is the amount of people who work [and visit] at the museum from all different cultures. … I really make it a point during different parts of the year that every culture is represented in the flower arrangements.
“You don’t have to be an amazing florist. [Flowers] are doing the trick already.” —Remco Van Vliet
R•HOME: What do visitors take away from experiencing these arrangements?
Van Vliet: Everything in a museum — there’s nothing alive, except the people. I think [the flowers are] a nice connection between inorganic and organic artwork. Sometimes I joke around that I’m the only living Dutch master in the museum. … Same in a house: I always have flowers in my house. Always. Even if you have a plant that doesn’t do too well, at least there’s another living organism in the house, and it feels more friendly. If you don’t have anything alive in the house besides yourself, I don’t think that is good for your health. So it is important to have organic items mixed in. People don’t realize it, you can’t put your finger on it, but it’s the reason you feel comfortable in some spaces and not in others.
R•HOME: What can the everyday entertainer take away from your VMFA presentation?
Van Vliet: One thing I know 100 percent for sure is that even people who think they know a lot about flowers, once they’ve come to my lecture, they will know a lot more. I have a lot of knowledge about flowers — how to grow them, where to grow them, how to arrange them. Everybody is able to apply that in any way they want. I speak from my perspective about color combinations or compositions; I’ll explain in layman’s terms the reasons I don’t think colors go together or why this composition doesn’t look good. I have a lot of tricks up my sleeve.
But flowers are beautiful already. You don’t have to be an amazing florist. They are doing the trick already. It should not be intimidating. … I think people should just be happy. No matter what your personal skill level is, or what flowers you have available to you, you don’t have to spend a fortune. People should not be intimidated because that takes away from the whole message I want to bring.