The landscape designer and former model Lily Kwong has made botanical art for the High Line and Grand Central Terminal. Her latest project is a native-plant nursery and foundation in Sun Valley.
Bougainvillea and palm trees are as common in Los Angeles as brake lights on the 101. Could that be a bad thing? “Bougainvillea, boxwoods, Madagascar palms—none of these are native to this region,” the landscape designer Lily Kwong said the other day. She stood in front of her house on the east side of L.A. wearing a khaki jumpsuit and leopard-print slides. “All of this used to be boxwood,” she said. “It was just, like, dead. You’d never see any wildlife.
A former model, Kwong used to peddle aesthetics. “I was the most depressed, anxious, and exhausted I’ve ever been,” she said, pointing out the contents of a row of planters: lemon balm, chocolate mint, and mugwort, which, she claimed, “can help you remember your dreams.” She grew up on the fringes of Muir Woods. Hobbies: “Leading a band of kids into the woods, foraging for plants, building forts,” and watching her grandfather tend a vegetable patch.
Modelling gigs in Paris, London, and Shanghai piqued her interest in cities and “the way people connect,” she said. “It’s so dependent on public spaces and parks.” She modelled while majoring in urban studies at Columbia. Around the time of graduation, she booked a Tiffany & Co. campaign. Instead, she took a job with the landscape-design firm Island Planning Corporation.
At the nursery, she said, “Look at all the bees!” They buzzed around Matilija poppies with egg-yolk-colored pistils. Evan Meyer, Theodore Payne’s executive director, approached in a baseball cap and a denim shirt.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Lily Renée's Señorita Rio from WWII-Era Fiction House, Up for AuctionSeñorita Rio was one of the premiere spy thrillers of the Golden Age of comic books, drawn by a historically important artist Lily Renée. FictionHouse sponsored
Read more »
Walsall: Mum's flashbacks over hospital stillbirth traumaWalsall Manor Hospital patient Zoe Wall lost infant Lily-Ann after staff misread scans.
Read more »
Tree trimmer in San Francisco Bay Area dies after falling into woodchipperA tree trimmer employed by a local branch of the F.A. Bartlett Tree Expert Company died in Menlo Park, California, Tuesday afternoon after falling into a woodchipper, police said.
Read more »
NFL Week 6 picks, predictions: Who wins Bills vs. Chiefs, Cowboys vs. Eagles, other games?We pick and predict every NFL Week 6 game, including the Buffalo Bills vs. Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys vs. Philadelphia Eagles.
Read more »
Familiarity breeds completions: Link between QB, coach have UW passing attack clickingArizona football notes: Just like the last game vs. Oregon and the next one vs. USC, the Wildcats are about to face a quarterback and a play caller who know each other well.
Read more »