I am a big fan of Canadian landscape architect Claude Cormier and when I saw the photographs of his Les Boules Roses installation in Montreal, I almost immediately booked a ticket East. Created for the Aires Libres summer celebration which turns Sainte-Catherine Street East into an art-loving pedestrian zone, the piece features 200,000 resin balls in three sizes and five tones of pink. Using bracing wire, the rows of balls are laced through the trees in nine different suspension patterns and at varying heights. The final product is a magical canopy stretching over 1km between St. Hubert and Papineau streets. The different tones of pink and levels of suspension bring dimension-rich, joyful texture to the streetscape. You can see this gorgeous temporary rooftop from now until September 16th. The world needs more colourful street canopies methinks…

(photographs via claude cormier, archdaily and arthitectural)

The first of May is known as Lei Day in Hawaii, a celebration of Hawaiian culture. A day full of music, lei-making competitions, the coronation of a Lei Queen and her court, hula and general merry-making, this year is the 85th anniversary of Lei Day. Hawaii is my adopted second home so I plan on bringing some Lei Day festivities to Vancouver today! One of the best facets of Lei Day is the celebration of the holiday’s namesake – the gorgeous, fragrant and colourful flower garland known as a “lei” worn around one’s neck. Icons of “aloha“, these traditional symbols of Hawaii mean welcome, friendship, respect and love. They are heavenly feats of flower architecture and definite eye candy for a colour lover. From pure white tuberose leis to ornate magenta orchid ones, there is not shortage to the inspiration found in these famous symbols of Hawaiian culture. I love seeing modern interpretations of leis too including injected gold geometric shapes or creating artful half-leis on silk ribbon. After researching photos for this post, I am determined to find more reasons to pop on a colourful lei…

(from top, photographs via style me pretty, bloomers blog, style me pretty, elliot chang, makena g, sweet blossoms hawaii, noel hawkins, tiger_tim_2000, neka pearl, martha stewart weddings and rue magazine)

Back in February, I posted about The Colour Run and was rather sad to see it wasn’t coming to my hometown of Vancouver. A powder throwing party à la Holi and overall colour-loving celebration? Yes please! I then heard about Color Me Rad, a similar event promising “5km of colour bombardment” and a “royal rumble of colour” as the grand finale (all with a portion of the proceeds going to a local charity). Thankfully, Vancouver is in the tour dates and I can’t wait to participate. Upon registration, you are given the option to buy additional non-toxic colour powder packs and I, um, may have purchased quite a few. Whether The Color Run or Color Me Rad, I hope one of these Holi-like events is heading to your hometown (fingers crossed for expansion outside North America too). If you are in Vancouver, I will see you there! What a joyful way to spend a day with fellow colour lovers…

(photographs/screen caps via color me rad)

Click here to view the embedded video.

Close your eyes and imagine a mixture of joyful Holi pigment throwing and a healthy run/walk in the fresh air. Yes, this heaven exists and its name is The Color Run. With the slogan “5 kilometres of colour madness”, this awesome event is less about a race (it’s not timed) and more about spending the day celebrating colour, family and friends. The only requirement is wearing a white shirt and being game to be covered in vivid hues. Throughout the run, participants are doused in bright pigments (food grade cornstarch that is 100% natural and safe). Each kilometre is focused on a specific colour – 1k is yellow, 2k is blue, 3k is green, 4k is pink, and the 5k finish is a “Colour Extravaganza” where a rainbow of hues are thrown with joy. I can’t think of many public runs or events that could create such unbridled happiness, fabulous imagery opportunities and pure colour love. What an inspired idea. The 2012 Colour Run is currently touring through 20 U.S. cities (see the list here). My fingers are crossed that The Color Run heads to Vancouver and the rest of Canada soon. Actually, I hope it becomes a global phenomenon because I’m thinking a day spent throwing colour and getting fresh air might be a key to solving some world issues. Until then, I will be contemplating selling all of my belongings and travelling city to city as a Colour Run groupie…

(photographs/video via the color run)
(thank you joseph and christopher!)

The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month marked the end of World War One and is now a day when countries around the world honour those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, those who served and those who continue to serve. It is a holiday unique to every nation but in Canada and many Commonwealth countries, Remembrance Day is a memorial wrapped in vibrant red. Why red? For the symbol of Remembrance Day itself – the poppy. Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian artist, doctor and solider, wrote the now iconic poem “In Flanders Fields” in 1915 as he processed seeing the bodies of so many fallen comrades intermingled with the bright red poppies that now marked their graves. The poem was published shortly after and spread across the world. Its first two lines, “In Flanders fields the poppies blow/Between the crosses, row on row” inspired the use of poppies as a symbol of remembrance. The blooms are sold each year to raise money for Veteran services and worn as a promise to never forget those who served and continue to serve.

I didn’t mean to turn this post into a rambling history lesson (although I have been asked by many a tourist what the red flower is for!) Overall, Remembrance Day is a day of honour, reflection and red. The poppy is an enduring symbol of gratitude and I am always struck by their beauty and meaning. Combined with the colours of military ribbons and uniform neutrals, it is a day of poignant colour palettes and a vivid poppy red that ensures we always remember. The image above of lights is of Vancouver’s war memorial in Victory Square Park and is a piece of local art I really love. Eleven lights based on WW1 helmets encircle the memorial and, when lit at night, always feel like a hauntingly beautiful tribute to all of those we lost and are beyond thankful to…

(photographs via themonarchist, iammacgirl, amanda last, tt24813055, matt s, wikipedia, dale calder, piscesdreamer and rainypete)

I have always loved Papel Picado, a Mexican festive decoration that translates into “perforated paper”. Stunningly elaborate designs are cut from tissue paper or plastic using a template and small chisel, allowing artists to make many flags at one time. Papel picado with various motifs including nature, love and skeletons are strung up in vibrant rows of colour for festivals, weddings, baptisms and holidays. Such a beautiful handmade art form that brings rich colour and detail to a celebration. Time to try making some papel picado for an upcoming fiesta!

Oh and some fascinating information from wikipedia about the colours selected for papel picado:
“Sky blue or pink and white are commonly chosen for celebrations in honor of the Virgin Mary, yellow and white for parton saints, vibrant pink, orange, and purple are the key tones employed for ofrendas (offerings) associated with the Day of the Dead. Shades of purple are also widely used at Easter. The colors of the Mexican flag – red white and green – are set aside for venerating the nation’s patroness, La Virgen de Guadalupe, as well as for commemorating Independence Day, Sept. 16th. Rainbow hues are appropriate for Christmas and non religious festivities.”

(photographs via krickett, emiliano rodriguez, andrea docksey, visit san antonio, mexican sugar skull, wickedlady, kristina husby, sebastian ibarra, roving gastronome, love and lavender, thomas aleto, mexican sugar skull, andrea m. gómez, delexed, bullshit artist, timlewisnm and thomas aleto)

I knew this morning’s Royal Wedding of William and Kate would be a true celebration of colour, pomp and circumstance. It certainly didn’t disappoint! The gorgeous, timeless beauty of Kate’s ivory Alexander McQueen dress, the vibrant crimson and royal blue military outfits and the rainbow of fancy frocks and fascinators – what a feast for a colour lover! Cool hues, particularly in the blues, appeared to be the most popular fashion choice but every part of the colour spectrum was represented. I particularly love that coral flower worn by one reveller. As I write this, the wedding reception has yet to begin but I’m hoping more colourful photos emerge from that part of the event. I am thrilled that I got to have a party at 3 am and watch such an iconic and colourful celebration of two people that seem so down to earth and in love. Let’s hope William and Kate make colour a priority when they are King and Queen! I have some decorating ideas for Buckingham Palace…

(photographs via people, daily mail, just jared, cbc news, bbc, buzz, instyle, msnbc & ny mag)

These photos of Kami and Ryan’s wedding made me smile. The rainbow of bridesmaids is amazing! My favourite part is how each bridesmaid has a bouquet matching their selected hue. Definitely one of the most colour loving weddings I have ever seen.

(images via cori cook)

If there is one festival or event I am dying to attend it is Holi, the Hindu festival of colour. This past weekend Holi was celebrated in India as well as Nepal, Sri Lanka and several other countries with large Indic populations. There is plenty of fascinating history and rituals tied to the annual festival that you can read about here. I bet you can guess the part of Holi I am obsessed with – the day devoted to throwing coloured powder and coloured water in celebration! There are many theories tied to this practice but most revolve around bringing people together – cutting across classes, castes and beliefs while officially ushering in spring, the season of love. I am dazzled by images of markets full of colourful pigment piles that turn into brilliant clouds of colour. Most of all, I love the unbridled joy and love of colour demonstrated by those celebrating Holi and how their faces become individual works of art. I really need to book my ticket to Holi next year!

(images via majid saeedi, angela coles, shrimaitreya, majid saeedi, my modern met, my modern met, majid saeedi, star telegram, kalsnchats, majid saeedi, poras chaudhary, les ghosh trotteurs, majid saeedi, rafiq maqbool, majid saeedi, my modern met, rafiq maqbool, my modern met)

There are few holidays that celebrate one colour more than Saint Patrick’s Day. Every year on March 17th, the world seems to glow green as shamrocks, leprechauns and four-leaf clovers mark the celebration. Ireland, known as the Emerald Isle, is a nation of rolling hills and lush landscapes that only further highlight the dominance of green in Irish life. Interestingly, blue was the traditional colour of Ireland and Saint Patrick. Even today, Saint Patrick’s blue (a sky blue) and Presidential Blue (a dark shade) are the official colours of the Government of Ireland. The original Ireland flag as well as the current Coat of Arms and the Standard of the President of Ireland feature a gold Irish harp on a Saint Patrick’s blue background. There are plenty of theories of how green took over but most agree that Saint Patrick used shamrocks to explain the Holy Trinity to Irish pagans which forever linked wearing the green symbol to the holiday. Hundreds of years later, Saint Patrick’s Day is a celebration bathed in shades of bright green and unbridled merriment.

For over 40 years, Chicago has been famous for dying the Chicago River a vivid shade of Emerald Isle green for their St. Patrick’s Day Parade celebrations. Intriguingly, the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Union (who began the tradition) don’t use green dye. In a feat of colour theory and/or magic, orange dye is mixed with the river water to create that famous green hue. I have heard that recipe for the non-toxic orange dye is a closely guarded secret within the Plumbers Union which certainly explains why only Chicago has really succeeded in creating a green that brilliant. Wishing you a wonderful Saint Patrick’s Day celebration full of colour!

(images via bass_nroll, alexander noe, kathy, nechaiphoto, bluemarla, paul swortz, sébastien b, richard milnes)

La Félibrée is a French festival that celebrates the language, culture and traditions of the Occitan. Since 1903, this festival has taken place on the first Sunday of July in a different town in the Dordogne region of France. I imagine there are many fantastic elements to this celebration but I have always been mesmerized by the sheer amount of incredible decorations. The town holding La Félibrée is bathed in spectacular colourful displays of handmade paper flowers as they are strung across every conceivable surface. It is such a beautiful display of craftsmanship and the bright colours punctuate the celebratory occasion. I would love to see a behind-the-scenes account of how the kilometres of paper flowers are created each year!

(images via will richards, camilla engman, tourisme vezere, will richards, famille valentin, terrasson, gothickma, martine, famille valentin)

Behold Lindsey and Avi’s wedding. The portraits of individual wedding party members are just plain stunning. The way hair and eye colour contrasts with opulent, vibrant fabrics kind of takes your breath away. Rather than standard wedding shots, the bride and groom are left with colourful, editorial-style photographs of their friends. Brilliant.

(photography by Jesse Leake. See the whole set here.)