The NY Times, TV, and Even the New York Lottery Charmed
Nick Leshi is Associate Director of Public Relations and Electronic Media.
The Holiday Train Show at The New York Botanical Garden has been a magical must-see for more than 1 million visitors over the past 17 years. Edward Rothstein of The New York Times called it “exhilarating,” marveling at “the wonders of this annual show” that presents “New York through a looking glass.”
David Hartman, popular television personality, produced and narrated a charming documentary about the Holiday Train Show, revealing how the structures are made from natural materials and displayed to the delight of visitors of all ages. The documentary aired last year 528 times across the country on 285 PBS stations.
In case you missed it, below is a clip of the show. You can catch the entire program tonight, December 11, at 10:30 p.m. on Channel Thirteen/WNET-TV. It will air again several times during December on PBS, including on WLIW-TV; check the online schedule. If you’re looking for a stocking stuffer or holiday gift for a loved one (or for yourself), the documentary is available on DVD at Shop in the Garden
After viewing the clip, you’ll see why the Holiday Train Show has been a sought-after location for singular New York events. That tradition again rang true last week when the New York Lottery awarded more than $17 million to two winners before replicas of the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall, and others and to the delight of a festive crowd of visitors young and old that erupted into spontaneous congratulatory applause.
There have been other occasions over the years when Holiday Train Show visitors received an additional unexpected treat, including a marriage proposal between New York City police officers that was nationally broadcast on the Today show and a mayoral press conference that touted the wonders of the holiday season in New York. Amid the glow of twinkling lights in the Botanical Garden’s Enid A. Haupt Conservatory, the Holiday Train Show proved the perfect magical setting for these memorable events.
Make your own memories by coming to see the Holiday Train Show in person, through January 11, 2009. Tickets are available for purchase on the Garden’s Web site. See for yourselves what Mr. Rothstein in his review described as “this phantasmagorical landscape, which at twilight comes alive with illumination.”
Amanda Gordon, a writer and consultant to the Garden, first wrote about NYBG when she was a reporter at the New York Sun.
A glittering flurry hit the Holiday Train Show last Friday night when it became the setting for The New York Botanical Garden’s 10th annual Winter Wonderland Ball. Sponsored by Chanel Fine Jewelry, this black-tie event raised $250,000 for the Children’s Education programs at the Botanical Garden and brought 350 guests to the sparkling Enid A. Haupt Conservatory and adjacent tent for cocktails, dinner, and dancing. During the past decade, the ball has become a tradition for supporters of the Garden in their 20s, 30s, and 40s.
“I look forward to this all year. It’s the most festive Christmas event. It’s so nice to get out of the city and be surrounded by a beautiful environment and all fun, good friends of our age group,” one of the ball’s chairmen, Alex Kramer, commented. “It’s also nice because you get out of the city and you have just green everywhere,” another chairman, Christian Leone, said.
Designers Erin Fetherston and Holly Dunlap attended, along with model and writer Jessica Joffe and Marie Claire’s fashion director Nina Garcia of Project Runway fame. The guest list for the event was so fashionable that Vogue set up a photo booth to take pictures of guests for the magazine’s February issue. Bill Cunningham of The New York Times also snapped away.
But the eye-catching gowns competed for attention with the equally eye-catching trains, bridges, and buildings featured in the Holiday Train Show. “I wish I were a little person who could ride on the trains,” model Coco Rocha noted before getting in front of a camera to interview guests about their outfits for the Web site Style.com.
For Chanel, the event was an opportunity to support an important New York institution as well as to enhance the botanical legacy of its signature flower. “We’re excited tonight because we’re working with the Garden to create a variety of camellia that is going to be named after Coco Chanel,” Chanel’s Division President, Fashion, Fine Watches & Jewelry, Barbara Cirkva Shoemaker, revealed.
With or without fancily clad guests, the fairyland atmosphere is present for all visitors to the Holiday Train Show, which runs through January 11 and is especially magical for children. “I brought my young son today,” a Ball committee member, Adelina Wong Ettelson, said. “It’s pretty amazing for a four-year-old to see; actually, it’s pretty amazing for a somewhat older than 40-year-old.” Ms. Wong Ettelson hinted that she might come back for another visit. “I told my son that if he was a really good boy, I’ll bring him back to see Thomas the Tank Engine in January,” she added. The popular character will be visiting the Botanical Garden from January 3 through January 11.
Rustin Dwyer is Visual Media Production Specialist at The New York Botanical Garden.
Friends of The New York Botanical Garden, Barbara and Bill Friedrich, demonstrate their vintage-style apple press to make some delicious, fresh apple cider to share.
Tens of thousands of visitors have discovered the same, awed by the exquisite beauty of these meticulously cultivated chrysanthemums in a traditional Japanese art form never seen before on this scale outside Japan. “If the stock market has you blue, go to the exhibition and drink in the uplifting display,” wrote Bill Cunningham in The New York Times.
But hurry. The spectacular flower show and cultural exhibition comes to a close Sunday. For an extra special experience, you may want to come this evening from 6–8 p.m. for Kiku and Cocktails, when you can view the exhibition under lights and with the authentic ambiance of live Japanese musical performances.
The polls have closed and the final results are in. Voters have made their choice. Time to announce the results of…our Kiku Poll!
Two weeks ago, we asked visitors to select their favorite kiku style and the race was tight. It seems all four display styles have their fans. In an extremely close survey, the dramatic single-stemmed ogiku pulled an upset, coming from behind for the win, earning 30 percent of the votes. In a very close second place was the dome-shaped ozukuri, with 28 percent. The new style, shino tsukuri, and the cascading kengai were tied for third, both with a respectable 21 percent.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to vote in our fun little election. Be sure to see the displays in real life by visiting Kiku: The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum, which runs through November 16. This video gives you a preview of what you’ll enjoy.
Nick Leshi is Associate Director of Public Relations and Electronic Media.
Art fans, rejoice! Moore in America: Monumental Sculpture at The New York Botanical Garden , the largest outdoor exhibition of Henry Moore’s artwork ever presented in a single venue in the United States, is being extended through January 11, 2009.
The show, a collection of 20 major pieces, opened at the Botanical Garden on May 24, during the height of the spring flowering season. It garnered critical acclaim from the media and the public alike during the summer months. Now nearly all of these magnificent works by one of modern art’s greatest icons can be seen during fall and early winter, providing audiences with the chance to experience the sculpture for the first time or return again to witness them in contrasting seasons. The monumental pieces are positioned throughout the Garden’s 250 acres and among its 50 gardens and plant collections, complementing the historic landscape during nature’s changing cycles.
The extension of Moore in America through the holiday season guarantees that visitors to The New York Botanical Garden will be able to enjoy the outdoor sculpture while simultaneously experiencing the Garden’s other major exhibitions—Kiku: The Art of the Japanese Chrysanthemum through November 16, the Library gallery art exhibition The Chrysanthemum in Japanese Art through January 11, and the Holiday Train Show from November 23 through January 11. The Henry Moore Foundation, which is dedicated to furthering the understanding, appreciation, and enjoyment of Moore’s work, is co-curating Moore in America with the Garden.
If you still haven’t had the chance to see Moore in America, now is the perfect time. And if you’ve seen it already, now you have even more time to see it again with friends and loved ones, discovering anew the combination of Henry Moore’s fine sculpture and the spectacular Garden settings in changing seasons.
Here’s a video in which Educator Anabel Holland tells us a little more about a few of the sculpture.
Madeline Yanni is an instructor of Botanical Crafts in NYBG’s Continuing Education program.
With autumn and the holidays at hand, it’s an inspiring time to bring the outdoors inside by creating botanical centerpieces, topiaries, wreaths, gifts, and more. Handmade items can save you money and even time—I like to make crafts that, with some interchangeable elements such as candles or ribbons, can be used in more than one season.
The Continuing Education program offers a number of hands-on crafts courses to help you decorate your home with your own creations throughout the year, including this Saturday’s Holiday Crafts all-day program. Even if you’ve never done this before, don’t be inhibited. No experience is necessary. Come take a class or two.
I want to draw out your creativity and whet your appetite for this fun way to decorate with a step-by-step guide to creating a simple, inexpensive, wreath for your table. It can be changed from season to season and can also be used on your wall. It is made from a grapevine wreath adorned with parchment roses, seeded Eucalyptus, other botanicals, and pillar candles—materials available at a crafts store. Feel free to improvise and use other types of botanicals.
As with any crafts project, first read the instructions and collect the necessary materials.
Are you ready? Let’s begin!
See the materials checklist and detailed, step-by-step instructions for creating this seasonal holiday table wreath after the jump.
The polls have closed and the final results are in. Voters have made their choice. Time to announce the results of…our Kiku Poll!