The photographer Juliane Spaete made her dream come true when she met Ruth Gombert, the founder of Sois Blessed, a concept store in Munich. She gave her the opportunity to turn her dreams into reality. Juliane is now responsible for the flower and design department where she can create her own visual language for her flower bouquets and everything that surrounds it.
IRMA: Which experience made you decide to work with flowers and plants?
JULIANE SPAETE: Ironically, the idea of working with flowers never occurred to me until moving into my photo studio in a magical East London warehouse with a shared garage entrance. Florence Kennedy from Petalon used it as her flower workshop and I started arranging bouquets from leftovers, which she kindly left in front of my doorstep every now and then. Despite that, living in England was quite an inspiration itself in terms of greenery. People seem to really take great pleasure in caring for their garden, and flower market strolls are a common weekend activity.
IRMA: What is your ultimate floral passion or your dream come true?
JULIANE SPAETE: Growing up in the countryside, I am realising more and more how much freedom I was able to experience in my childhood and being close to nature is a part of me. Living in a self-sustainable environment, surrounded by nature friends and family, maybe growing my own flowers, seems like a very tempting thought.
IRMA: What does it mean to live with flowers, can they influence your well-being?
JULIANE SPAETE: I am fundamentally convinced that working with flowers does influence our well-being. In fact, it is surprising how the ego-driven system we live in hushes up how deeply we depend on nature. It is the moments of awe when working as a florist I am most grateful for. Discovering new shapes, smells, colour patterns and nature’s overall wisdom.
IRMA: What special services and ideas do you think about in the future when it comes to working with flowers?
JULIANE SPAETE: I am currently focused on further developing the flower studio concept for SOIS BLESSED in Munich with unique bouquets, literature, vases and other interior items. Something I would love to see in here is a customised seeds collection in collaboration with the HOPE SCHOOL in Johannesburg, a social project working with children who are affected by HIV. Our design team has already created a non-profit fashion & accessories line based on the children’s artworks, and it is exciting to work on a project with such a powerful impact.
IRMA: Where do you draw inspiration from, and what is your tip in making a great idea actually work in real life?
JULIANE SPAETE: I draw my inspiration from lots of different sources. Oftentimes a chain of creative thoughts can be based on a single image or a shape I see, but mostly nature is so inspirational itself. Great ideas often start with a fear of failure. My best advice is probably to never give into any of these fears. Follow your gut. Create. See what happens. Maybe something even greater than the initial idea will be the outcome. Creativity has no limits…
IRMA: Which film, artwork, book or music says it all when it comes to flowers?
JULIANE SPAETE: One could write a book about that, but I just rediscovered Nobuyoshi Araki’s flower compositions and C.G. Jung’s essays on nature technology & modern life.
Photo © William Cooper Mitchell