History

History

The story of Flower Force

Flower Force began with the FLOR500 project in 2013, created by Xavier Cortada to commemorate Florida’s quincentennial, or its 500th birthday. Through FLOR500, Cortada invited Floridians to plant wildflowers dedicated to individuals who helped shape the state, honoring both Florida’s natural history and its cultural heritage.

Since FLOR500, Flower Force has evolved into a larger eco-art movement, encouraging individuals nationwide to plant native wildflowers in their communities. Cortada’s vision has expanded beyond Florida to include public art installations and wildflower gardens in other states, such as Kentucky. Each new garden and public art piece celebrates local landscapes and biodiversity while inviting participants to take action.

The project’s core values remain rooted in community engagement and ecological restoration. By creating habitats for pollinators and encouraging the use of native plants, Flower Force empowers people to restore and protect natural spaces. Each wildflower garden is a small but vital act of conservation that celebrates local history, preserves biodiversity, and fosters a sense of shared responsibility.

The Flower Force initiative continues to grow, connecting people to their environment and each other. Join us in carrying forward this mission to create a lasting impact on the natural world.

Xavier Cortada’s Flower Power exhibit at the Oldest House and Garden Museum is part of ONE RACE THE HUMAN RACE / UNA RAZA, LA RAZA HUMANA – an international cultural exchange with Cuban artists, presented by a consortium of Key West cultural organizations.
 
Left:  Xavier Cortada, “Cultivo un Rosa Blanca,” digital art (2014)

Open Garden | Fruta Bomba

The backdrop for the Cultivando | Flowers for Cuba (flower-drawing) garden at the Oldest House & Garden Museum will be a 6′ x 18′ mural Cortada is creating onsite.  The work, inspired by his interaction with Cuban artists during his stay in Key West, is to depict a series of fruits falling upon the the island of Cuba.  Each fruit– the product of a flower– represents the fruits of an open society that will come to Cuba when it is finally free: a thriving economy, equal justice for all, rule of law, free and fair elections, freedom of assembly, speech, worship, and travel, human rights, etc. 

500

At the entrance of the garden, visitors will also see Cortada’s “500” installation referencing Florida’s history and its connection with Havana over five centuries:  Juan Ponce de Leon died in Habana in 1521, after being injured in the leg on the west coast of Florida by the spear of a Calusa warrior.

Digital Tapestries

The entrance of the Oldest House and Gardens Museum will feature digital tapestries Cortada created for the exhibit, a cultural exchange with Cuban artists in Key West:
  • “Cultivo una Rosa Blanca,” 72″ x 36″, sublimation dye on fabric, (2014)
    In creating 2014’s “Cultivo una Rosa Blanca,” Cortada used a white rose he had painted ten years earlier for the “Painted Cuban Plane and Freedom Luggage Installation.”
     
  • “XII. Rosa,” 72″ x 36″, sublimation dye on fabric, (2014)

    In creating “XII. Rosa,” Cortada used a white rose he had painted in his 2000 work titled, “XII. Paredon.”

  • “Flor pa Cayo Hueso,” 72″ x 36″, sublimation dye on fabric, (2014)
    In creating “Flor pa Cayo Hueso,” Cortada used this 2013 wildflower painting “Flor.”  The work commemorates the 500th anniversary of Juan Ponce de Leon landing in our peninsula and naming it “La Florida” –from “flor,” the Spanish word for flower.

FLOR

Flor, a 48″ x 36″ acrylic on canvas painting hangs inside the Oldest House house foyer next to a painting by the late Mario Sanchez.  The work depicts a native Florida wildflower.  Cortada created the painting to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Juan Ponce de Leon landing in our peninsula and naming it “La Florida” –from “flor,” the Spanish word for flower.