Córdoba is repainted in colors with the return of the FLORA Festival.
Those who refuse to leave spring and good weather behind, are in luck: ** FLORA, the International Flower Festival, returns from October 18 to 27 for its third edition**. The objective? dye the city Cordova of color and provide it with an atmosphere that seems to be taken from a fairy tale.
Far from the simple fact of decorating the streets of the city, working with flowers is a whole parallel world. Thus, FLORA aims to be the showcase for some of the most important national and international artists of this floral art . To carry out this task, a careful selection of participants will invade the courtyards of Cordoba with their works, providing a different cultural vision in each one of them.
Like every year, the Festival launches a theme to be followed by the artists when making their works. This year, the common thread could not be more Traveler: "Trip" . With this, it is intended that, through the works of the participants, the public embarks on a new path and that be able to reach different places through the flowers.
The world of flowers is an undiscovered secret and the FLORA Festival has set out to be its showcase.
And, attention, because there is a prize. The two best floral installations of the Festival will be able to enjoy a first and second prize of €25,000 and €10,000 respectively. This decision will be made by an international jury , but you can also act as judges. will be awarded a Audience Award to the one that receives the best ratings from the attendees. One more excuse to head to the Andalusian city.
WHERE AND WHO
The architects of all this spring explosion have names and surnames, and come from all corners of the world. Starting with the closest Flower Motion, from Spain , are a group of fifteen florists from Madrid who are willing to give a lot of trouble. Their creations are distributed randomly and anonymously around the city every month and it is not surprising that, from time to time, they stand in the middle of the street to show their work. His work can be enjoyed in the central courtyard of Casa Góngora.
From Australia comes Mary Lennox , whose use of flowers is based on one of the most popularly known formats: the romantic . The handling of different shades is her strong point, as is her inclination for plants and flowers that we are not used to seeing. The central courtyard of the Palacio de Orive will be the setting for his work.
The two best floral installations will be able to enjoy a first and second prize.
We traveled to Thailand to meet PHKA and her use of flowers as you have never seen before. This studio, made up of fifteen members, is an example of the union between innovation and tradition. These artists are dedicated to transform spaces through plants and flowers , that is, they use them as an architecture to reinvent the facilities in which they are found. The group will turn this irrepressible imagination on the Courtyard of the Chapel of the Viana Palace, from the 17th century.
Lisa Waud arrives from the United States , specifically, Detroit. Her vision is also different. This artist uses flowers as a tool for change, she intends to give visibility to marginal groups and leaves behind the idea of working alone . For this reason, she surrounds herself with collaborators, and those who attend her work always become the protagonists. This power to change things can be seen reflected in one of her most important works: The Flower House, in which more than 100,000 flowers restored life to an abandoned house. These transcendental questions will have a place in the Patios of the Palacio de los Páez de Castillejo.
With a different theme, each of the participants explores a field of flower art.
It could be said that more than a geographical journey, the latest artist travels through time. As if it were the rococo era, from France comes Thierry Boutemy , responsible for the floral work of Marie Antoinette, the film by Sofia Coppola. Despite this, it has nothing to do with the work that he will carry out in FLORA since, leaving behind all kinds of ostentation, this French artist intends release flowers and plants using them in their natural form , without makeup or artifice. The one chosen to show his charming work is the Patio del Reloj.
THE NEW
There is no "but" when it comes to seeing installations that take your breath away and in which beauty is the main protagonist. But if that doesn't seem like much to you, this year the FLORA Festival adds a calendar of activities in which it will cost you to opt for only one.
They start with a section of FLORA Encounters , in which attendees will be able to meet the artists who hide behind these works. In the Botanical Garden, the florists of Córdoba, who also deserve the title of true artists, will tell what their profession is like and what it consists of, within the framework of the FLORA School.
As a novelty, this year Córdoba is filled with floral plans.
And in order not to miss out on this undiscovered universe, in the FLORA Workshops , they will talk about botany, flowers, floral illustration in watercolor... Even activities for the whole family, such as the workshop The language of flowers or one in which the little ones can enjoy creating their autumnal garlands.
For the cinema, the film _Loreak (Flowers) _ will be screened , and for music, the musician and composer Fernando Vacas , will carry out performances that dialogue with the installations of the artists, thus creating a FLORA Sound Map . Apart from the already known quotes, Soledad Sevilla will create The Salvation of the Beautiful , a floral work specifically designed for the Contemporary Creation Center of Andalusia .
There is no lack of detail in these ten days, in which the Cordovan patios put on a colorful dress and change the walls for the petals. FLORA arrives to dye the brown tones of autumn and Córdoba seems to be impregnated with a dreamy spirit , straight out of a story. Head to the Andalusian heart and live your own spring in October.
Workshops, meetings, screenings and everything you need to immerse yourself in the world of botany.