Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Olivia Chisholm. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Olivia, appreciate you joining us today. Can you tell us about a time that your work has been misunderstood? Why do you think it happened and did any interesting insights emerge from the experience?

I do feel that both – myself and my work have been mischaracterized. I am not a traditional florist. I am an artist that uses florals as a medium to design. All florists are artists, but I find limitation in what is often associated with traditional work – pretension and a copy and paste model of “beauty”. My life’s work has always been centered in culture and exploring the many layers of humanity that make us beautiful. Therefore, my life’s work will live through my artistry. Art is a means to an end, and the ends is always us- the people and our stories.

I also have a clinical background in therapy. I use florals as a modality for healing with a similar approach to how I was trained – holistically and research-based. I have been deep diving into evidence-based research lately. There are a lot of studies that detail the benefits of flowers. That excites me! The clinical background adds a dose of wellness to my work that is also goal-oriented. I set specific goals for each project that are rooted in a great deal of psychology and fundamental needs. I access barriers and room for improvement often. There is always room for growth. The therapist in me is always shooting for progress in each project.

The overarching theme of feeling misunderstood is often being characterized as either a traditional florist or a wellness instructor. People try to make sense of my work, my rates, my story in their own parameters , but I am out of bounds. Through feeling misunderstood, I fall in love more and more with being out of bounds. If we all lived out loud. If we all lived in color, we would see that there are not parameters

In truth- I am a multi-disciplinary designer who has an emphasis on community and well-being.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I started To Live in Color after seeing a high need for inclusion and equity programming in cultural spaces. Prior to 2020, I consulted and curated community programs for Microsoft , ImagineOn Children’s Library , The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art, and other cultural spaces.

When the pandemic hit in 2020, I began focusing on the culture we embrace within the walls of our own homes. These should be our safe spaces. Breonna Taylor, her family, and many other Black people do not get this comfort. Amidst a global pandemic and while continuing to work as a healthcare worker, I started “Giving Black Women Their Flowers”, a cultural ode to Black women , delivering bouquets to Black women in Charlotte,NC.

Since, my design work has bloomed from florals into set design, paper products, and experiential design. A few proud moment include designing flowers for grammy-award winning artist Leon Bridges and his band, designing a greeting card dispersed by the Apollo theater in 2021, and continuing to create intentional spaces for us to commune. My workshop, The Blooming is a wonderful blend of a floral and wellness workshop.

When I am not planning community programming or designing for To Live in Color , you can catch me at Levine’s Children Hospital where I serve as Program Director for Arts For Life, an organization dedicated to supporting pediatric patients and families through arts education and engagement.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Honoring my “no’s” has been a part of my journey that best illustrates my resilience. It is not easy to say no to projects. Rather it be for the money, or wanting to feel a sense of collectiveness with others – I really honor my activism and have said no to working with some brilliant people that I admire and have a larger platform than me. There have been 2 pivotal moments in the past year where I felt like the project did not give a true space for my artistry or activism so I respectfully declined.

Are there any books, videos, essays or other resources that have significantly impacted your management and entrepreneurial thinking and philosophy?

Reading about the Newton Florist Club in as many publications as I could changed my relationship with floral work after being frustrated on feeling misunderstood. Other go to’s include The Matrix ( the first one) , Warriors of the Light by Paula Coelho, and “On Flowers” by Amy Merrick.

Contact Info:

• Website: ToLiveinColor.com
• Instagram: to.LiveinColor

Image Credits
Carey J King DaRemen J. Richard Israel