ME+EM AT THE CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW
It’s that time of year again, when flower-lovers and gardeners unite at The RHS Chelsea Flower Show to celebrate five days of cutting-edge garden design.
This year ME+EM are getting in on the action by collaborating with MHLK Collective – an innovative London-based landscaping collective created by Julia Hill and Sophie Knittel – to create a Showground Installation at the Chelsea Flower Show titled ‘Timeless Expressionism’.
MHLK Collective was launched after Julia and Sophie bravely embarked on 180-degree career changes to follow their passions. The pair met on a design course and, well, the rest is history. Working with a powerful message in mind, MHLK Collective pioneers women in the horticulture field and explores the strength in collaboration, facets which are honoured in the ‘Timeless Expressionism’ garden.
It’s the haute couture of the garden design world
Sophie Knittel on The Chelsea Flower Show
Inspired by ME+EM’s May collection and the brand’s enduring focus on Intelligent Design, the ‘Timeless Expressionism’ garden is an homage to strength, femininity and longevity. Much like ME+EM’s founding principle, Julia and Sophie want to champion the way women juggle every aspect of their life.
Proving it really takes a village, Sophie and Julia worked independently on the brief before uniting their personal ideas with ME+EM’s key principles of storytelling, tactility and intelligent design. The pair found themselves drawn to the idea of creating a safe space or sanctuary for the modern woman.
The garden is based around a central ‘infinity loop’ in the collection’s key shades and is arranged to protectively curl around an outdoor lounge chair where our modern woman can relax (and maybe enjoy a glass of wine). The battens stand as a symbol of strength and poise, while gaps in-between allow the garden to be viewed at different angles.
Feminine, colorful, timeless
Julia Hill on the ‘Timeless Expressionism’ garden
When it comes to the flowers, it’s not as simple as choosing beautiful plants and planting them. Julia and Sophie carefully selected an array of flowers and shrubs that captured ME+EM’s May collection palette and most importantly, would be in season.
Alliums, digitalis, irises and poppies provide height and vibrant colour in varying shades of pink and purple, while verdant shrubs such as ferns and different forms of grass provide texture. Julia and Sophie are also hoping to include showstopping peonies in the garden, but due to their famously short flowering season, we’ll have to find out on the day…