Inside Madrid Blooms 2026: floral design is having a moment

Floral designer Mikey Putnam sits among a display of grasses

Mikey Putnam of Rosandich – a New York-based studio with high-profile clients such as Gwyneth Paltrow – was among the programme's star attractions

(Image credit: Facibeni Fotografia)

In an extravagant flurry of petals, flowing grasses and florist’s twine, Madrid Blooms 2026 swept into the Spanish capital last week (28-30 January) at the Palacio de Santa Bárbara. Now in its third year, the international floral design congress gathers top floral designers and artists from around the globe to share – and show off – their talents with attendees, who paid up to €3,190 for a three-day ticket. The audience included professionals, suppliers and enthusiasts alike.

floral display — Madrid Bloom attendees work alongside masters and collaborate on large-scale installations, such as this one led by Victoria Clausen Floral

We live in an era in which floral artists, long orbiting the world of celebrity, have become stars in their own right, commanding vast social media followings. At Madrid Blooms, the line-up included Bryce Heyworth of September Studio, a designer and digital creator with more than 1.6 million followers who has worked with Kourtney Kardashian and brands including Lexus, The North Face and Armani; Mikey Putnam of Rosandich, the floral designer behind Gwyneth Paltrow’s wedding; and Lilo Klinkenberg of Studio Lilo, whose sculptural compositions have appeared in projects for Jil Sander and Cartier.

According to Grand View Research, the global cut flower market is thriving, valued at $39bn in 2024 and expected to surpass $51bn by 2030. We sat down with festival founder and director Sylvia Bustamante Gubbins – a journalist-turned-flower educator, and the owner of Madrid Flower School – to find out why floristry is a world we should be paying closer attention to.

Wallpaper*: How did Madrid Blooms start?

Sylvia Bustamante Gubbins: The conference is a crazy idea I had in mind for years, which came to fruition after I bumped into the director of Madrid Design Festival. Pili Fuentes, from Flower House Mexico, was also there at the beginning.

With only four months to go, I sent out seven invitations to important floral designers, thinking that some would say no. To my surprise, they all said they would come, and since then, seven designers have been included in the official programme.

In 2025, the conference was held at the Casa de México. Working surrounded by first-class crafts was pure inspiration. This year we moved to the Palacio Santa Bárbara: a space full of light and more square footage in the centre of Madrid. And once again, we sold out.

W*: Can you tell us about the programme?

SBG: On the first day, lectures and live demonstrations by the designers; on the second day, two three-hour workshops; and on the third day, students work on a large-scale floral installation, which can be visited by the public the following day. Each participant can take classes with three designers. My goal is for each person to learn as much as possible, and even better if it is outside their comfort zone.

The designers vary from year to year and come from a list of recommendations and discussions with the Madrid Flower School team, which organises the event. This process is the longest and most difficult. The selected designers must have an original creative language, a different approach, and be good teachers. One of them has to be local, Spanish or foreign, but with a career in Spain.

Then comes the task of obtaining all the botanical material they need – we have even been asked for artichoke leaves. In winter, the variety of flowers is limited, and our relationship with flower growers and wholesalers in America and Europe has been key.

W*: What's new for 2026?

SBG: We have a record number of sponsors, we have added a mini-fair, and, as usual, we have a star sustainable product. Another addition we are introducing this year is a professional networking breakfast for our sponsors and local and international figures in the floral design industry, to encourage long-term relationships to form at our congress.

It's a demanding scenario because the attendees are also designers with a business up and running. They are looking for inspiration, but also new techniques and specific information. With 17 nationalities in the previous two editions, we have jumped to 28 this year and four continents, America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. People are coming from Eastern Europe and a large contingent from Brazil. Last year, we had students from Alaska to South Africa, including Ghana.

W*: At what point does floral design move beyond decoration and become an art form?

SBG: I think [floral] artists have always existed, but now we see them. Floral design is an ephemeral art that has expanded exponentially for two reasons: social media, especially Instagram, and technological development – today you can take a good photo with your phone and enhance it with an app. I can find out what a florist is doing in her workshop in Bangkok and then see what's happening in another workshop in Brooklyn.

‘Floral design has expanded exponentially for two reasons: social media, especially Instagram, and technological development’
Sylvia Bustamante Gubbins, founder and director Madrid Blooms

W*: What shifts have you observed in botanical design over the past decade?

SBG: It's funny, but ten years ago I was living in New York and starting my journey with flowers. As a journalist, I was amazed at how geography and culture influenced designs. Russians loved extra-large bouquets. Australia had a fascination with exotic flowers. Spain was obsessed with longevity and opted for dried flowers. The United States was experiencing its most romantic era with Garden Style. New York and London, as always, were islands where anything was allowed.

Today, however, geographical boundaries no longer exist because the world is connected. Think of the craze for pampas grass a few years ago.

It has always been difficult to find your niche and stay true to your style. It is tempting to copy what already works, but if you don't move on from that stage quickly, it is a sad sight to see on social media. You have to master the rules and then forget them. Only then can you create something superb and exciting. Scale and shape don't matter, as long as they respond to what you want to communicate.

‘You have to master the rules and then forget them. Only then can you create something superb and exciting’
Sylvia Bustamante Gubbins, founder and director Madrid Blooms

When floral designers create an arrangement with the intention of communicating meaning through their materials, they invite us to feel something and to reflect on what we are seeing, like we would with any other artistic medium. Flowers become a raw material through which floral artists develop and explore their own visual language, bringing their own creative proposal to their work is what makes it an art form, and we’re seeing this movement in works in museums, events and the world of advertising.

W*: Sustainability is often cited, but what does responsible practice actually look like at the luxury end of floristry today?

SBG: We are experiencing the best phase, as the industry has finally accepted that a growing number of florists and customers no longer wish to contribute to pollution. If you think about it, it is completely illogical that we, who extract the most beautiful things from nature, return a piece of plastic that will remain for the next hundred years.

Individuals are investing time and money in creating biodegradable solutions such as Oshun Pouch, Phoam Labs (both plant-based floral foam alternatives), and OLMS Bamboo Floral (a company making compostable water tubes and bamboo floral sticks). And large companies are also moving in that direction. The real luxury is having a clean planet.

W*: What themes, materials or botanical directions at this year’s edition best signal where the future of floral design is heading?

SBG: Contemporary design is the language now, and I see that it still has a long way to go. It is a thoughtful design, with a solid foundation in the principles of Ikebana. Everything is intentional: the choice and quantity of materials, the juxtaposition of botanical elements, the clean and clear forms.

‘Flowers such as carnations, which were once looked down upon, now take on importance because of their texture. Today we marvel at the majestic form of Lilium longiflorum, when before we could only imagine them on a coffin’
Sylvia Bustamante Gubbins, founder and director Madrid Blooms

Flowers such as carnations, which were once looked down upon, now take on importance because of their texture. A small and delicate Ixia Spotlight takes centre stage because it no longer fills gaps in arrangements. Today, we marvel at the majestic form of Lilium longiflorum, when before we could only imagine them on a coffin. Now, the floral volumes climb the surfaces of museums, and go beyond weddings and events.

This year, the novelty comes from the Ecuadorian tropics. [Ecuadorian supplier] Magic Flowers sends us 85 types of exotic flowers and leaves, such as musas, raulianas, and hibiscus.

W*: Finally, what do you think is driving the renewed appetite for cut flowers today?

SBG: I think making a bouquet is something almost instinctive for human beings. We long for nature, we long for its scents, colours, and textures. That's why every time we pass by a flower shop, it's so hard not to leave with a bouquet. Even more so in cities with little green space. For me, New York is the best example. Look for a flower shop on a map of Manhattan and you'll soon see a red spot covering the island.

Paulina Nieliwocki of Blue Jasmine Floral teaches a floral workshop — Paulina Nieliwocki of New Jersey-based studio Blue Jasmine Floral led a workshop on creating 'neo garden centrepieces'

I think the opening of professional schools and conferences such as Madrid Blooms has a lot to do with this desire to learn floral design. In the case of Madrid Flower School, I believe that displaying arrangements under artistic direction changes our perception of what is possible with flowers.

‘I believe that displaying arrangements under artistic direction changes our perception of what is possible with flowers’
Sylvia Bustamante Gubbins, founder and director Madrid Blooms

And finally, how much fun it is to discover new varieties. The first time I saw a Lilium martagon, I was mesmerised; I was convinced it was a new variety. A week later, I discovered that flower in an 18th-century lithograph. Gerberas were not among my favourite flowers until spider gerberas appeared. And now there are micro ones, smaller than mini ones! This is a delightful and fascinating world.

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Ali Morris is a UK-based editor, writer and creative consultant specialising in design, interiors and architecture. In her 16 years as a design writer, Ali has travelled the world, crafting articles about creative projects, products, places and people for titles such as Dezeen, Wallpaper* and Kinfolk.