The popular orchid exhibition at The New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) returns for its 18th year with The Orchid Show: Jeff Leatham’s Kaleidoscope. Just 20 minutes from midtown Manhattan, visitors will see thousands of orchids on dramatic display in dazzling creations by lifestyle icon and floral designer to the stars Jeff Leatham.
On view February 15 through April 19, 2020, Leatham’s captivating designs and installations will transform each gallery of the exhibition in NYBG’s historic Enid A. Haupt Conservatory into a different color experience, like a turn of a kaleidoscope.
The award-winning artistic director of the Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris, Leatham was knighted in 2014 with the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres—the highest honor for artists and others who have made a significant contribution to French culture. Leatham also has studios at the Four Seasons Hotel Philadelphia at Comcast Center and the Four Seasons Hotel Los Angeles at Beverly Hills. His clients include Cher, Dolly Parton, Tina Turner, Oprah Winfrey, the Kardashians, and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. His publications—Flowers by Jeff Leatham, Flowers by Design, and Jeff Leatham: Visionary Floral Art and Design—remain best-selling design books worldwide.
Jeff Leatham has been creating a sensation with his floral installations since he began his career in 1995. His work is a combination of his love for flowers and passion for design. Using shape, color, and simplicity, his creations are dramatic, bold, unforgettable statements that are always an integral part of the setting.
Arches of hanging orchids of deliberate hues will deliver a kaleidoscopic tunnel effect and, along with other design surprises, bring thrilling and hypnotic sensory delights to the 2020 Orchid Show. Leatham is working with horticulturists from NYBG, including Senior Curator of Orchids Marc Hachadourian, to assemble orchids from its collections as well as from some of the finest growers in the world. Orchids of seemingly every conceivable shape and provenance, including rare and iconic specimens, will be on display in breathtaking configurations.
“Color is the first and most important aspect of my work, always,” Jeff Leatham said when describing his creations for The Orchid Show. “I want every gallery to be a different color experience for visitors as they move through them, like looking into a kaleidoscope. I loved kaleidoscopes as a child. You start dreaming as you look through one. People have seen the interiors of the Conservatory already, but with this exhibition, I want them to look through them like never before.”
During Orchid Evenings on select dates throughout the run of The Orchid Show: Jeff Leatham’s Kaleidoscope, adults 21 and over can experience the exhibition at night with music, cash bars, and light bites. Advance ticket purchase is recommended to guarantee admission to these signature events.
At NYBG Shop, Orchid Show visitors may select from thousands of top-quality orchids, from exotic, hard-to-find specimens for connoisseurs to elegant yet easy-to-grow varieties for beginners available for purchase, along with orchid products and books.
For more information about The Orchid Show: Jeff Leatham’s Kaleidoscope and to purchase tickets, visit the Garden’s Web site at nybg.org
