The iconic Mexican artist Frida Kahlo (1907 – 1954), known for her love of sunflowers, nature, and life, and her use of botanicals in her artwork, is undeniably having her ‘moment’ as of late. There have been a number of major Kahlo themed events around the world and the latest is the New York Botanical Garden’s “Frida Kahlo: Art, Garden, and Life”, which runs through November 1st.

Frida Kahlo’s Casa Azul (Blue House)

The wonderful, multi-disciplinary exhibition, which explores the way in which Mexico’s plants and flowers inspired her artwork, includes among other things, 14 of Kahlo’s original works; a reproduction of her studio and the garden in her Mexico City home, Casa Azul (Blue House), and photographs from her life.

Frida Garden

But while the show actually opened last month, Frida herself really came to life Thursday night during the course of the NYBG’s 41 Annual Conservatory Ball, dubbed “A Night in Coyoacan”. The evening of cocktails in the Perennial Garden, followed by dinner and dancing in the glass enclosed Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, had a Mexican flavor (literally, down to the drinks and cuisine).

Alexandra Lebenthal in Carolina Herrera

It benefitted Children’s Education and Plant Research and Conservation Programs at the NYBG ($1.6 million was raised). Gala Chairmen were Ann Johnson, Alexandra Lebenthal, Gillian Miniter, Deborah Goodrich Royce, and Carolina Herrera, whose company fittingly sponsored the event.

Carolina Herrera

Quite frankly, this was a match made in heaven since the designer, known for her love of nature, has admitted to having long been inspired by Frida’s “vibrant use of color, sense of proportion, and her whimsical style all her own”. In addition, Herrera also sponsored the exhibition in the LuEsther T. Mertz Library’s Art Gallery, which showcases 14 of the artist’s paintings and works on paper. In fact, the designer’s third largest market is Kahlo’s hometown, Mexico City, where she staged last fall’s runway show this past November.

Jennifer Napier Nolan in Carolina Herrera

There’s no question that from a fashion standpoint, the best events are those that have at their heart, a good fashion theme, and this certainly describes last night, as it was obvious many of the women (there were over 600 guests) took the evening’s theme (and sponsor) to heart sartorially. The NYBG’s gardens (where cocktails were served to the music of a mariachi band), and the glass enclosed Enid A. Haupt Conservatory (with its pathways strewn with colorful sunflowers, palms, cacti, marigolds, fuchsia, and oleander, where guests passed through on their way to dinner), provided a perfect backdrop for the exuberant fashions on display.

Brenda Diaz de la Vega in Carolina Herrera

A large majority of the guests channeled Frida by wearing something with a floral or botanical motif, or by adding flowers to their hair (a Kahlo signature). And quite a few paid homage to Carolina Herrera, by wearing one of her beautiful dresses, which were perfectly suited to the evening.

Constance Jablonski, Carolina Herrera de Baez, Patricia  Herrera Lansing & Marina Rutherford

Among those in the latter camp: Carolina herself (who wore a sunflower yellow floor length shirt dress embroidered with black flowers from her resort 2016 collection); her two daughters, Patricia Herrera Lansing and Carolina Herrera de Baez; Alexandra Lebenthal; Michelle Salas; Jennifer Napier Nolan; Jean Shafiroff; Emmy Rossum; Brenda Diaz de la Vega.

Marilyn Kirschner with Jean Shafiroff wearing Carolina Herrera

In the meanwhile, for me, this served as a perfect excuse to wear one of my fabulous vintage hand painted 50’s Mexican circle skirts, which are always wonderful, especially this time of the year. What I love is that they are authentic, truly unique, and no two are alike. And they are readily available at vintage shops and websites, and of course, on ebay.com and on etsy.com.

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All photos Lieba Nesis (Click images for larger views)

The New York Botanical Garden held its annual Orchid Dinner at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.  This is a premier social event with floral enthusiasts and social luminaries gathering to show their support for horticulture.  The dinner began at seven with a cocktail hour and scant hors d’oeuvres, where rare and precious orchids were for sale as well as the auctioning of various plants.  The Hearst Corporation, Veranda, and BNY Mellon were underwriters of the evening, and all the proceeds from the dinner, which raised six hundred thousand dollars this year, go toward developing the Garden’s orchid research collection.  Orchids, which have more than thirty thousand naturally occurring species, are the largest family of flowering plants.  The garden itself has more than six thousand orchids in its permanent collection, but enough about this amazing flower, let’s talk about the illustrious crowd and the elegant atmosphere.

Jean Shafiroff and Dawne Marie Grannum in Oscar de la Renta with Joanna Fisher

The group this year appeared more jovial and relaxed- perhaps attributable to the excitement in seeing flowers amidst the frigid temperatures.  Martha Stewart, Jean Shafiroff and Alexandra Lebenthal were just a few of the social glitterati present to show their support for the Garden; however, it was the tables and their designers that were the true stars of the evening. The Garden and Veranda assembled an acclaimed group of over twenty five designers from the world of fashion, architecture, horticulture and literature who donated a dramatic orchid centerpiece and table setting for the event.  The theme of this year’s event was “Key West Contemporary,” celebrating the symbiosis between lush gardens and vibrant architecture to recreate Key West’s charm in the heart of New York City.

Dan Dahl design coordinator

This event is all about understated elegance and Dan Dahl, the coordinator of table designs for the past eleven years, reiterated this by stating, “this year is not quite as flashy as the other years and I am not sure if this is due to the poor state of the economy.  However, the details of the vases, linens and arrangements are more intricate and exquisite.  I don’t know too many people that don’t like orchids; they have a beautiful color and scent and they last a very long time.”  He prepares for this night months in advance and enjoys the way it transports him to another time period.  Martha Stewart, who of course grows her own orchids and probably talks to her plants more than she was willing to converse with me, loves the lavishness of this species of flowers.

Martha Stewart and Marc Hachadourian

Marc Hachadourian, the Garden’s orchid specialist for fourteen years, has been growing orchids since he was ten years old, and is fascinated by the diversity of this plant life.  Hachadourian, has traveled to South Africa, Australia and Colombia to view these flowers in the wild and his passion for them has informed his life. Shawn Henderson, a relative novice in floral arrangements but a renowned interior designer who has designed homes for Will Ferrell and Glenn Close, designed his modernist table with inspiration from a Paul Rudolph sketch and loved that the table design only took him a day whereas, home design can take years.

Alexandra Lebenthal

As the cocktail hour began to conclude I spotted Alexandra Lebenthal, in a beautiful white springlike Tahari dress with jeweled sleeves.  She acknowledged that she wears white in the winter and does not believe in dressing “season appropriate.”  Lebenthal, who chairs many Conservancy events, said the botanical gardens, in addition to being aesthetically beautiful, has a utilitarian function because it has more plant specimens than any other institution in the world, which are used heavily in pharmaceutical research.

Table settings

While the group proceeded to the larger room adorned with magnificent tablecloths, flowers, and silverware, a small crowd began dancing.  Before leaving I encountered a woman named Joanna, in a pink vintage coat and diamond and pearl earrings.  When I inquired as to her love of flowers she responded, “as a heavy set woman with few fashion choices the paltry sum I spend on clothing allows me to indulge in horticulture and gardening.”   The exuberance and solace people feel around flowers is unsurprising and highly contagious; arriving in my apartment I hurriedly unwrapped the flowers I received for my birthday –  the beauty of the roses ameliorated the misery that accompanies turning a year older.

The post An Oasis of Beauty – The Botanical Garden Dinner appeared first on lookonline.

Olivier Giugni next to his floral arrangement (All photos: Lieba Nesis)

The New York Botanical Garden’s annual Orchid Dinner was held at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. The Garden in collaboration with Veranda, a leading design magazine, collaborated with over twenty five of New York’s leading floral designers in the world of architecture, horticulture and literature to create and donate a dramatic orchid centerpiece and table setting for the event. This year’s theme was “Exotic Inspirations” and the room and the floral design certainly lived up to the crowd of floral enthusiasts expectations.

Swan like Flower arrangement at dinner table

Upon entering the main dining area, overlooking all of Central Park and Columbus Circle, the atmospheric winter wonderland effect was overwhelming; each table had a different floral design so unique I literally gasped with surprise. I was quickly transported into the stratosphere of numerous countries such as China and India with nothing but a quick elevator ride. The accompanying tablecloths, place settings, and chair designs, were so magnificent I wished I had known these designers, actually artists, before I got married. The event was underwritten by BNY Mellon, Tiffany and Co., Hearst Corporation and Veranda which explained the opulence and elegance of this happening. This is one of the most anticipated society events of the winter social schedule and I quickly understood why.

Dan Dahl coordinator of the show

The evening, which began at seven, started with a cocktail hour filled with hors d’oeuvres and an open bar in a room replete with orchids. This was the time for the leading orchid specialists to assist the guests in choosing orchids from the dizzying display. The guests were so well mannered and gentrified, my camera was the noisiest object in the room. I immediately recognized a lot of the faces from the opera and the ballet and knew this was a crowd that appreciated aesthetic beauty. Dan Dahl, who coordinated the design of the flowers for this event, and has been doing so for the past ten years, stated,”It takes me a month to process the designers’ requests. I know the ins and outs of orchids and am therefore equipped to handle this monumental task.” He then told me how ninety-five percent of the orchids were imported from Thailand and he had worked hard with the designers to transport the guests to a different world.

Jean Shafiroff wearing Oscar de la Renta

Olivier Giugni, owner of the floral company L’ Olivier, who has been designing floral arrangements for this dinner for the past fifteen years, said, “I love this crowd because its full of floral and travel connoisseurs. It took me two full days to put together just the floral arrangements and then I have to collaborate with the designers.” Sigourney Weaver, statuesque in an elegant red dress stated, “I love orchids. This is the most beautiful night of the year. I look forward to it all year it is just so elegant. I have so many orchids at home I just work at keeping them alive. I love how this event anticipates the coming of spring and I make sure not to miss it.” Jean Shafiroff, a cochair of more than six charity boards, reiterated, “it is so important for New Yorkers to have a place to see beautiful flowers and to have an organization that researches the best way to preserve a species. Moreover, it’s a great learning space for kids who can lose themselves for a while. I attend all of the galas held by the botanical garden. It’s one of my favorite charities.”

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