80
Friday, September 6, 1985
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Israeli Florist
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The noted designer adds the finishing touches to his Interflora
World Cup entry.
967-HELP
Monday-Friday
9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
In cooperation with these
Jewish Welfare Federation member agencies:
• Fresh Air Society
•Hebrew Free Loan Association
•Jewish Community Center
•Jewish Community Council
•Jewish Family Service
•Jewish Federation Apartments
•Jewish Home for Aged
•Jewish Vocational Service
and Community Workshop
•Midrasha—College of Jewish Studies
•Resettlement Service
•Sinai Hospital
•United Hebrew Schools
h
cording to his interest and
needs.
Gil maintains contact with
former students by holding
monthly floral club meetings
to discuss new ideas and
techniques. In the last three
years, Gil has taught 200
students.
In 1982, he published The
Living Flowers, a glossy,
coffee-table book illustrating
his lifelong interest in floral
arrangements, with color
photographs and explanatory
text. Today, Gil's floral ar-
rangements are found in the
Israeli president's home or at
special embassy affairs.
Participating in the 1985
Interflora World Cup repre-
sented a once-in-a-lifetime
experience for Gil. It was a
chance to grow and learn, to
offer his own unique insight
and creativity within an in-
ternational forum.
Gil explains, "I see myself
as a winner just be being
here. I was willing to take on
the great expense of the trip
and the competition because
I see myself as a cultural
emissary. I will be able to
bring back to Israel the
newest trends and ideas from
the world's greatest floral
designers." •
Preparing for the Interf-
lora took time and effort, and
posed unique problems. Six
months prior to the contest,
Gil received a booklet outlin-
ing the five known events.
The sixth would be a sur-
prise. Each event offered a
different theme and specific
requirements and limitations
as to size, materials, flowers
or fruits.
Gil spent . six months in a
creative whirlwind, plan-
ning, sketching and design-
ing his response to each
event: "Table Design," "Bri-
dal Bouquet," "This is My
Country," "Flowers, Fruits
and Plants," and "FTD's 75th
Anniversary."
Many potential problems
were anticipated and ac-
comodated. Realizing that
fresh flowers are not allowed
through customs, Gil sent In-
terflora a list of all the fresh
flowers he would need for
each event.
He prepared himself for
working with American spe-
cies whose properties would
be different from Israeli
varieties. "American orchids,
for example, are stiffer and
less pliable than Israeli or-
chids," he explains. Before
coming to Detroit, the Gils
flew to California to find
figs, grapes and pomegra-
nates that would be similar
to the Israeli varieties.
Once here, he visited
greenhouses and flower
warehouses, searching for
last minute additions.
The Interflora World Cup
ran from Sunday, Aug. 18,
until Thursday Aug. 22, and
coincided with the FTD
Florists Conference held the
same week. Yossi and Shifra
planned on spending Sunday
through Tuesday at Ford
Auditorium in their assigned
booth, practicing and making
final preparations for Wed-
nesday's contest events. Mira
Eisenberg would act as their
interpreter.
But Tuesday brought
catastrophe. When Eisenberg
arrived at Ford Auditorium
that morning, she found
Yossi and Shifra bewildered
and upset. Gil's many crates
of flowers were missing. For
the next six hours, Eisenberg
and the Gils tried to replace
all the necessary flowers,
. fruits and greenery. Eisen-
berg directed and coordi-