Flowers for the City

For the past few years, massive art installations have taken the people of New York City by surprise. They find flowers bursting from trash cans, draping over sculptures, and curling around lamp posts. These installations are called “Flower Flashes.” They feature colorful flowers like red roses, yellow carnations, and pink cherry blossoms.

The stealthy florists behind these bouquets work at Lewis Miller Design. Lewis Miller, the company’s owner, came up with the idea to share leftover flowers. He was carrying an arrangement home after an event one night and noticed amazed looks on people’s faces when they saw the gorgeous roses and peonies out of context.

So early one morning in 2016, Miller put his idea into action. After filling the company van with 2,000 leftover flowers, the designers visited Central Park. They created a lush border of hot-pink, yellow, orange, and red blooms around the “Imagine” mosaic at the John Lennon Memorial.

For the past few years, people in New York City have been surprised by giant bouquets of flowers. The blooms burst from trash cans, drape over sculptures, and curl around lamp posts. They’re part of massive art installations called “Flower Flashes.” They feature colorful flowers like red roses, yellow carnations, and pink cherry blossoms.

The florists who make these bouquets work at Lewis Miller Design. Lewis Miller, the company’s owner, came up with the idea. He was carrying a flower arrangement home after an event one night. People looked amazed to see the gorgeous roses and peonies in the streets. Miller decided he wanted to share leftover flowers with the public more often. 

Early one morning in 2016, Miller put his idea into action. His team filled the company van with 2,000 leftover flowers. Then they visited the John Lennon Memorial in Central Park. They arranged hot-pink, yellow, orange, and red blooms around the “Imagine” mosaic at the memorial. It formed a lush border around the black and white tiles.