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‘Natural Heritage’: The NYBG Orchid Show with Lily Kwong

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‘Natural Heritage’: The NYBG Orchid Show with Lily Kwong

February 20, 2023

As a child, Lily Kwong was fascinated by four scrolls that hung in her family’s living room. Depicting mountainous landscapes, they were a gift from her grandparents, who were from Shanghai. “I would stare for hours at these paintings and just get lost in the fantasy of them,” she recalls. “It was the first time I remember using my imagination.” The images made a lasting impression: When she was asked to be the guest designer—the first woman and first person of color—for the New York Botanical Garden’s 20th annual orchid show, she knew where look for a source of inspiration. “I just felt called to dig into those identity markers to explore them with curiosity and reverence,” she says.

Kwong and her team worked with the esteemed NYBG horticulture and exhibitions staff to create the extraordinary exhibit, called “Natural Heritage.” It showcases thousands of orchids—from the ubiquitous phalaenopsis to more uncommon species like Epidendrum ciliare, or the fringed star orchid. Kwong drew upon Chinese landscape philosophy, balancing yin and yang to recreate the mountains in her family’s scroll, “expressions of qi from the earth,” as she describes them. She covered large, smooth rocks with textured moss, festooning them with masses of fuchsia, yellow, orange, and white orchids.

If Kwong had to choose a favorite room, it might be the tranquil and contemplative walkway filled with white and pale-colored medicinal orchids like the dendrobium, first used as a treatment and tonic for longevity during the Han dynasty (202 BCE- 220 CE). This area is a tribute to her great-grandfather, who opened the Australia-Asia trade to Chinese herbs.

“One of the core principles of the Chinese landscape practice is the peaceful coexistence of humankind and nature, and, of course, we need that now more than ever,” Kwong says. “My prayer for this installation is that people will walk away inspired to mine their own heritage for a connection to the earth and the natural world,” she says. It seems her prayers will be answered: With a soundscape by composer Gary Gunn complementing the exhibit, the show is a feast for the eyes and the senses, as well as for the mind. One of the many informative signs scattered throughout the exhibition features a poem by Hua Mao, translated by Wendy Swartz. It encapsulated my emotions upon leaving the exhibit. It concludes, “There is joy, there is full feeling.”

The exhibition runs through April 23, 2023.

Photography courtesy of the New York Botanical Garden, unless otherwise indicated.

“Confucius said that orchids grow where others cannot,” says Kwong. Cultivated for thousands of years in China and throughout Asia, orchids are resilient. “They’re found deep in mountain valleys, growing on rocks, not in soil, in impossible conditions,” she says. “They became a symbol of integrity, nobility, and strength.”
Above: “Confucius said that orchids grow where others cannot,” says Kwong. Cultivated for thousands of years in China and throughout Asia, orchids are resilient. “They’re found deep in mountain valleys, growing on rocks, not in soil, in impossible conditions,” she says. “They became a symbol of integrity, nobility, and strength.”
When landscape artist Lily Kwong was starting her practice in \20\17, she took classes at the New York Botanical Garden. “As I was developing my voice and my vision,” she says. “I was endlessly inspired by the gardens and conservatories .”
Above: When landscape artist Lily Kwong was starting her practice in 2017, she took classes at the New York Botanical Garden. “As I was developing my voice and my vision,” she says. “I was endlessly inspired by the gardens and conservatories [at the NYBG].”
Plant conservation is one of the missions at the NYBG. The garden is a sanctuary for orchid species threatened by poaching, international trade, and habitat loss. Since\1990, the garden has been a designated Convention on International Trade in Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) plant rescue center. They nurture confiscated plants and rejuvenate them.
Above: Plant conservation is one of the missions at the NYBG. The garden is a sanctuary for orchid species threatened by poaching, international trade, and habitat loss. Since1990, the garden has been a designated Convention on International Trade in Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) plant rescue center. They nurture confiscated plants and rejuvenate them.
Look up, look down. Treasures abound throughout the exhibit, like this fringed star orchid (Epidendrum ciliare). Photograph by Melissa Ozawa.
Above: Look up, look down. Treasures abound throughout the exhibit, like this fringed star orchid (Epidendrum ciliare). Photograph by Melissa Ozawa.
“My team and I have always been drawn to the rich ground where nature and culture intersect,” she says.
Above: “My team and I have always been drawn to the rich ground where nature and culture intersect,” she says.
This walkway was inspired by Kwong’s great-grandfather, who was “a renowned merchant and medicine man.”  “I always felt deeply connected to him. That moment especially holds that strength and excitement for me,” she says.
Above: This walkway was inspired by Kwong’s great-grandfather, who was “a renowned merchant and medicine man.”  “I always felt deeply connected to him. That moment especially holds that strength and excitement for me,” she says.
Another view of the meditative walk featuring the healing power of orchids. Photograph by Melissa Ozawa.
Above: Another view of the meditative walk featuring the healing power of orchids. Photograph by Melissa Ozawa.

You can follow Kwong on Instagram @lily_kwong.

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