Julia Rose

My studio is situated in the sleepy hills halfway between Byron Bay and the Gold Coast of Australia. Our little farm is set in a hollow—green and lush. Everyone who comes to the farm to shoot likens it to ‘Hobbiton,’ saying it feels like they have stepped into a fairy tale book. We have a beautiful freshwater creek that meanders from around our little acreage. It’s just perfect for creating my pieces and photographing them. There is a lily pad-filled pond down the back, home to wild ducks and their yearly ducklings. We have a darling little family of rescue babies including chickens, geese, guinea fowl, a dog and a cat. The ocean is seven minutes from our little farm, a quiet long stretch of stunning white sands.

I have fond memories of my Nan from when I was young. I was always attached to her side and she took me to art galleries, cultural festivals, theatre shows and many community events. She loved parks and the smell of old books. She always helped those in need and loved creating, cooking and her garden. She took me to the local church to have our flowers read (somewhat like tea leaf reading) and we’d trot all over the town collecting flowers on our way. I spent a lot of time playing in the gardens of all of my Nan’s clients and friends.

When I was young I started as a junior florist at the age of 16 and continued through as a trainee. Once I had my certificate I decided to take some time to travel, heading on a journey up the east coast of Australia in a Kombi van we painted in flowers. I worked in floristry for the bigger holidays in different towns (Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, etc.) and in between we made art to sell at local markets, five star resorts and to backpackers. I was always creating and selling my creations—anything from carvings to weavings to paintings. Even in my jobs I held in resorts I created…I was a ‘party motivator’ on the mic at one venue and also worked in theatre restaurants, holding a few roles on stage and the floor.

My art is an evolution of many aspects. I created, painted, drew, weaved and carved whilst I travelled. When I taught my skills in the trade they sharpened immensely. Then I intertwined them with other artisan techniques along the way, evolving into my own style and art. As it is true what they say, people can see passion; they connect with it. People can feel it in your creation. My partner and I gave up a ‘traditional’ life to do what we love and it fills my heart with pure joy to say people love what I do even more now, as it comes from a place that is real and pure. Creation is my job and my personal life. My favourite things are creation, travel, hanging out with my rescue babies and enjoying nature; all of these are my kind of heaven.

I create when I’m happy and I create when I am in pain. Actually, when I’m in pain all I can do is create, it heals me. Being creative is my everything. If I can’t create I tend to go stir crazy. My partner is a musician, and I love settling into our farm, with him on the acoustic guitar whilst I sit amongst our animals and just create.

My work is done with fresh floral product, it is momentary.

I found that my floral creations evolved immensely once I became ill. After my travels I came back to the ‘real world’ and took a real full-time florist position. I worked hard and did everything ‘as you should.’ However, I then became very ill. A bubble girl as such, with terrible allergies, chemical hypersensitivity and breathing difficulties. I became allergic to car fumes, sulphites (which are in almost everything) and synthetic fragrances in perfume and deodorant. Even if someone had washed their clothes or hair it would cause my nose and face to swell. I was forced to go into lockdown. My partner quit his job and we moved into a tiny house with tiles and filtered air-conditioning, wearing facemasks and always carrying breathing apparatuses.

I could not bear to do nothing, so my creations went into overdrive during this period. Once my immune system rebooted and I could venture outside, I started teaching (as I had studied to be a trainer during my illness) and I taught at college in the science lab, as it was a sterile environment. I now saw the world with new eyes. My students inspired me and I them. When I was sick, creation really became my passion, as I realised it made my happy, made me not feel sick. It was a natural evolution from there. My floral business grew, and I became super busy all of the time. Again I found myself worn out—not ill, but worn out. So in the middle of it all, we up and left, moving down to the farm, leaving the hustle and bustle of the city behind. Everyone was confused, saying “you are giving up right before you become amazing.” However, we didn’t care; we knew lifestyle was more important to us than money, especially after being ill.

Creating is something I have to do to feel whole.

To start my process, I think on a concept. Not too much, as I don’t want to make myself too aware of it, bringing nerves into the game, as a lot of my work is ‘live’ installations. I come up with floral concepts and my partner makes pre-fabrications. I then set a palette. The colour of model’s skin, shape of her body, her jaw, her hair—all of these elements play a role in my pieces; she is part of my art. Her look is key.

Then when it comes to the actual ‘creation’ of the piece, it is a natural evolution. My work is done with fresh floral product. Because of this, I cannot control the way the flower grew or the way the leaves want to fall in my design. So it’s very much evolutionary as I am creating, following the natural flow of the blooms. Working with fresh vegetation, being perishable—the challenge is making each and every little flower look perfect, and to stay perfect for the whole time the creation is to be shot or viewed.

When it comes to attaching the fresh flowers to my pieces I generally use floral wire, again it depends on what the piece is for. If it is to hit a red carpet from just an hour or so—wire it is. If it’s for an all-day event I might work some oasis into the design so the flowers can take water. If it is to last 2-7 days then I will put each flower in its own little water vial, then wire the vials into the design. I have also created some pieces from dried flowers, and a lot of these pieces have been box framed and featured in a local art gallery.

I have just been assigned Creative Curator/Director of a Gold Coast flower show called Main Beach Spring Flower Festival. This is a large event; an entire precinct will be decorated in floral art, there will be immersive designs, suspended spheres, botanical mannequins (and even botanical sheep!)…plus so much more. Afterward, I always donate the flowers to the hundreds of volunteers who help bring the event to life. Anything that is left (which is thousands of dollars’ worth of flowers), we take to hospitals, libraries and aged care facilities. I like to think that each and every one of those little flowers put so much effort into growing and they can bring smiles to the faces of those who couldn’t make the event…and can’t necessarily buy flowers, as they are a luxury item.

Last year I represented Australia at the World Flower Summit, which was a proud accomplishment. Creating all of the media for the international campaign and being handed out to masters from all over this gorgeous planet of ours was an amazing experience. I created a model on a rolling stage, took her out into the busy streets of Brisbane and shot the images in an ultra urban area as buses whizzed past. I also conducted a workshop for floral masters to attend. We orchestrated a live performance of singing, dancing and wild over-the-top headpieces…all in two days. I strive to stay true to my creative style—free, wild, organic, natural, raw and indulgent.

Mother Nature is my number one inspiration, really—who does it better? I also love the theatre and its over-the-top gorgeousness that moves you. And music, music really is key when I am alone designing. I’m proud that I am a freelance artist who creates with passion, loves to inspire and be inspired whilst traveling the world teaching, demonstrating and conducting fresh flower art bombs, just for the sake of making people stop and smile.