Flirting with foliage: An interesting competition

The Floral Art Society Pakistan (FASP) Islamabad Rawalpindi chapter held a competition titled ‘Flirting with Foliage’ for its monthly meeting and it was a well-attended affair -- so much so that half a dozen members from the Peshawar chapter also turned up to participate! First lady, Samina Alvi also attended the meeting, admired the arrangements and gave away the prizes.

Participants were told to let loose their imagination using new concepts; play around with foliage using techniques of manipulating, bundling, knotting, grouping, over lapping, stringing, wrapping, weaving, pinning etc. They were allowed to paint and form shapes; use dried and or fresh plant material; incorporate wood in any shape or size but the foliage would have to be predominant. Interpretation of the title was an important factor.

And so it was. Members had been divided into groups of two or three, then went to work on their design at 9.30 in the morning and had a deadline of 11 30 – though I’m sure a lot of planning and exchange of ideas took place in the days preceding the competition! After the given time judging took place and the judge was FAS senior member, Nusrat Bilal, who has also served as a judge in a recent international competition.

While the judging was taking place, Farhana Azim spoke on the competition and the methods that were used – it’s always a learning experience when she explains what’s what. The results were announced after Nusrat said a few words about how difficult it had been to judge the arrangements because all of them were of a high standard – but a small flaw here and there does take place and that is how a winner emerges.

1st: Farhana Azim; Tabasum Anjum and lshrat Sagir; 2nd: Ghazala Abdullah and Misbah Shuja; 3rd: Farhat Zaman; Rabia lmran and Shahana lrshad. There were ‘highly commendable’ and ‘commendable’ awards; a member of the Peshawar club got a ‘recognition’ award for carrying her exhibit all the way from there; the Peshawar team also won a ‘highly commendable’ award, and there were a few other prizes as well, while birthday girls were given their gifts. The committee was in a generous mood!

Needless to say it was an enjoyable affair, as always. There were a lot of opinions about the winning exhibits – not everyone agrees with the judge and has a personal favourite which is easy on the eye but may not meet the required perfection as far as floral ‘art’ is concerned! There was an arrangement by a new member which was admired by many, as was the vase of flowers made from beads by president, Zeenat Salim, which she presented to Farhat Zaman. Selfies and photos captured the moment and the ladies relaxed and enjoyed their refreshments.