The Farmer & the {Florist} Interview: Christin Geall

I am thrilled to have the opportunity to talk with my inspirational flower friend Christin Geall, whose new book, Cultivated: The Elements of Floral Style is hitting bookshelves soon. I met Christin when she attended an on-farm workshop in 2016. She has since gone on to teach floral design all over the globe and continues to inspire readers with her beautiful words on vancouver florist
Erin: Christin, thanks so much for taking time to share your story with Floret readers. For those not familiar with your work, can you share an overview of your story, as well as an overview of your new book, Cultivated: The Elements of Floral Style?
Christin: I’ve been working with words and plants for 30 years. I love ideas and so Cultivated: The Elements of Floral Style is really a series of short—sometimes personal—essays, paired with images. When people flip through the book they gush over the pictures (which I took, so that’s nice), but I want to say: “Don’t you just love that sentence?” I suppose I’m a writer first and foremost.
I like to use the word “essays” to describe the writing because it comes from the French essayer, meaning “to try.” In the book, I explore, in philosophical terms, and explain, in practical terms, what I have learned about floral design without any step-by-step instructions. I cover creativity, photography, rhythm, restraint, style, gesture, form, and color among other things. To build the narratives, I dove into history, art history, color theory, garden design, botany, psychology, and music. I have to say, it was a joy to research.
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