Dye Flower Garden Installation

The host of hand-made, dyed flowers have sprouted in the Horniman’s Gardens, in a collaboration for this year’s Chelsea Fringe festival and as part of Lewisham’s Borough of Culture.

All the flowers were created using handmade dyes and fixatives, like avocado and pomegranate skins. Yolanda and the children experimented with mordants – which help to fix the colours – over three weeks. Each dyed piece of fabric was then made into a flower on the end of a wire stem.

The installation is the latest project by Forest Hill floral designer Yolanda Chiaramello, who worked with children and community groups in South London on the installation. Forest Hill Boys and Horniman Primary Schools both took part in the process, as did Sydenham Gardens, a charity that aids mental health and wellbeing, Wandsworth Hospital and Home Tuition Service, and a Kickstart group at Lewisham Council.

See the display in the Garden by the Conservatory, during Gardens opening hours.