AESME SCHOOL OF FLOWERS specialises in naturalistic design techniques with a philosophy focused on materials and seasonality, celebrating the processes and the rituals of growing and arranging plants.

Every flower arrangement is an expression of its maker, a personal exploration and to this end, a celebration of individuality. But flower arranging is also the expression of shared values and the conduit to a wider conversation. How do we design in harmony with nature? How can we recognise the skills of farmers, gardeners and custodians of the land through our work? How can we connect to the seasons?

Our School offers a fresh perspective for those seeking answers. If you are taking the first steps on your journey with flowers, or you’ve reached a crossroads, we can provide a path to thinking about flowers differently.

By coming to our School you will equip yourself with the tools to approach your design work and creative practice with integrity, depth and direction. Our courses are for enthusiastic beginners, those trained in an alternative style or exploring a transition from another background entirely.

Every student has the opportunity to experience the beauty and variety of garden flowers through their organic forms, textures and colours, to learn about the plants our flowers come from and to reject hierarchy, making arrangements with everything from buttercups to peonies. Whenever you choose to join us, you will be surrounded by extraordinary natural materials - blossoming and decadent, wild and weedy, edible, medicinal and scented.

THE AESME MANIFESTO

Flower arrangement is an ancient art form, a human practice woven into our very existence on this earth. In a rapidly modernising world people have become totally disengaged with where flowers come from, how they are grown, harvested, which season they belong to. In many ways we have lost the very reason for arranging them - as a bridge to the natural world. This is prevalent in all aspects of floriculture in large scale production of flowers throughout the entire education system and across the events industry.

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ARTISTRY

The artistic composition of flowers is a highly skilled craft involving trained handwork and precision, study of the natural world and the constant handling and editing of plant material over many years to become fluent. This blend of technique, design theory, imagination and individual instinct through the medium of flower arrangement makes it a uniquely rewarding creative practice. 

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Ecology

Working in a naturalistic way with an emphasis on sustainability means looking closely at the plants we take our materials from and all the elements that affect them – the season, the weather, the soil, the insect life and biodiversity. The arrangements that result from this care and knowledge have a meaningful and evocative quality that speaks of that particular time of the year, the land they come from and the wider environment.

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SEASONALITY

Sourcing locally and seasonally is nothing new. It’s the most ancient way of sourcing our food - and our flowers, too. In our work we acknowledge that natural materials are not ‘a given’ at any time of the year; they have their moment and then they are gone. In the UK we have distinctly different seasons, our ingredients changing daily, weekly, monthly, and our arrangements reflect this in the vase, celebrating the natural world that we’re priviledged to be a part of.

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MATERIALS

The provenance and quality of our produce is of paramount importance. We foster a deep respect, a sense of reverence and responsibility, for the materials we are lucky enough to use in our work. Organically grown with skill and passion, untainted by chemicals, our flowers are hard-won, and we appreciate them all the more for it. They are the crux, the reason, the endgame. These ingredients are fragrant, surprising and nuanced, safe to handle and to sniff! 

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EXPRESSION

We believe in prioritising a dynamic creative process over the end product. Spirit over style. It is the active creation of an arrangement that provides the opportunity for self expression, a way to evoke emotion and ideas, inner thoughts and beliefs. In the composition of a flower arrangement is the means for reflection, healing, meditation, self care and ritual.