Artist and Founder of the Floral Heart Project is Turning Grief Into Healing With a COVID-19 Memorial
Kristina Libby founded the Floral Heart Project to create space for public grieving in the form of floral art. Her work honoring those lost to the pandemic is on display at SpreadLightNYC, a public art exhibit in Tribeca through February 28, 2021.
Kristina Libby, founder of. the Floral Heart Project. Photo courtesy of Kristina Libby.
Mindalt partnered in bringing this installation to life. For every purchase made in January, we’re donating 10% to The Floral Heart Project. Shop here. Learn more or donate directly at the Floral Heart Project.
What does a creative person do when they walk by a new building with yet to be filled storefronts in the middle of a pandemic? If you are Chrystoph Marten, you envision a community good focused version of Amsterdam’s red-light district celebrating New York through artist’s eyes. Marten went to property management with the idea of using the storefront windows to showcase the creativity that has helped New York City rebound from tragedy and epidemics alike — defying cries that “New York is over.” Now live as SpreadLightNYC, each window is filled with an interactive installation by New York City artists and creative entrepreneurs. Kristina Libby is one of the eight artists installed at 100 Franklin Street.
As a writer, professor, and technology executive, Libby didn’t have much time for her art. Then while recovering from a brain injury sustained kite-surfing last year, she turned to painting as part of her healing process. When the pandemic hit, she turned the healing power of art outward. She founded the Floral Heart Project to honor those lost from COVID-19 and bring comfort to the public in the form of floral heart arrangements placed throughout the city,
Heartbleed, Floral Heart Project @SpreadlightNYC.
Her installation piece for SpreadLightNYC combines live floral art with technology to create a powerful yet beautiful visualization of the impact of the pandemic. The digital piece is projected on the wall with a rose petal dropping for every life lost to COVID-19. timed for every day since the start of January 2020.
Find The Floral Heart Project’s installation at Window #1 at 100 Franklin Street, NY, NY along with a diverse range of SpreadlightNYC exhibits.
Mindalt Mood Enhancing Deodorant partnered in bringing this installation to life. For every purchase made via
we will donate 10% to The Floral Heart Project.
We sat down with Kristina Libby in person to learn more about the inspiration behind the project and how she makes her days matter.
Q&A
What inspired you to start the Floral Heart Project?
In April, I was sitting in my apartment feeling heartbroken, isolated, and alone. Yet, when I looked at the looming number of casualties from COVID-19 and the massive life changes of those stuck at home, I knew my pain was so much less than others. And, I wanted to do something —anything — to help.
My Master’s degree is in international security, and I’ve spent a lot of time understanding mass trauma incidents. When tens of thousands of people are dying, that’s intensive national trauma. Yet, no one was doing anything about it. Normally you’d see photos, flowers, and posters for people who have died. That’s what happened after 9/11 or during most wars. There was nothing.
Floral heat. at. Washington Square Park, Photo courtesy of Kristina Libby.
So, I decided to do something about it. I was an artist and a former florist, so working with flowers to create public art was a natural starting point. Once I laid the first one in April of last year, I kept doing more and more and eventually was able to partner with 1-800-Flowers.com. That’s when we really kicked the project into high gear by sharing the project, the story, and the stories of those who had lost people to COVID in an even bigger way.
What are you hoping to achieve with the initiative?
Right now, we have a massive public health crisis from the virus. The number of people dying is scaling at a rate that is nearly impossible to comprehend. I can’t do much to help with that. Thank goodness for our heroic first responders, doctors, and medical staff. However, following the virus we’re going to have a second national health crisis: a grief epidemic. If we do not deal with that grief and trauma, we’ll be looking at widespread PTSD. Projections estimate that nearly 15% of America (nearly 50 Million people) could suffer from severe PTSD following the trauma.
I hope that by providing an outlet for grief, a place for healing and community, the Floral Heart Project can help to quell the smallest amount of that looming health crisis. If we connect and feel connected, then I believe we lessen our grief and, more so, the burden of carrying it alone.
Floral Heart Project memorial event at Greeley Square. Photo courtesy of Kristina Libby.
How else are you bringing the project to life?
The Floral Heart Project began as floral garlands laid in the shape of a heart around New York City. Now, these pieces have become gathering places and through partnerships, I have hosted vigils with groups like Marked By COVID. Now, I’m taking a big step forward with the creation of a Floral Heart Project Healing Space.
This healing space is part of a community designed art project utilizing windows at 100 Franklin Street to create a socially-distanced, COVID-19 friendly gallery. Our window, thank you to the Mindalt team, is a destination for those suffering from COVID and a digital experience to help provide healing.
In collaboration with 1-800-Flowers.com, I hope to continue these unique floral tribunes to help connect individuals and families going through the grieving process by bringing them comfort and hope.
Kristina Libby at Heartbleed Installation. Photo courtesy of Kristina Libby
How did you get involved with floral art?
I paid my way through grad school by working at a bar and a flower shop. The bartending skills helped me at the start of the pandemic, but the flower shop skills were the most useful. I was able to utilize my knowledge of flowers, and my work as an artist, to build on this concept and scale it over time.
What is your hope for NYC coming out of the pandemic?
There is one way to help reduce our grief and stop our collective trauma: community. I hope NYC and the entire country come together for each other. If we can find a collective way of moving forward with each other, we will all be better off.
NYC has always been known for its creativity, what signs of that do you see now?
Artist Kristina Libby at Floral Heart Project installation. Photo courtesy of Kristina Libby.
NYC seems bursting with life right now and I think this will only continue. We are in a really interesting moment where we are in 3–5 months going to have a lot of empty storefronts. What are we going to do with those storefronts? We could fill them with traditional retail and restaurants. But, what else could we do? Do we create indoor parks? Bring in more interesting pop-up concepts? Better focus on community-oriented and priced goods? I’m not sure but I am hearing people talk about it, dream for it, and begin to make plans. THAT is what NYC does so well: when things get hard, the city dreams up a better future.
Floral Heart Project at Times Square. Photo courtesy of Kristina Libby.
Do you have a morning ritual?
I am a big fan of morning exercise — in part because I have a giant dog. My mornings happen exactly like this:
My Sheepadoodle Huck puts his head on my pillow and breathes heavily beside my face until I wake up.
He jumps up into the bed and needs to have at least five minutes of uninterrupted attention before he rolls over and goes back to sleep.
I check my email, read the morning news, and respond back to texts from people over the night.
Then, once I can get him out of bed we go for a walk for a few miles around Manhattan. If I’m feeling extra motivated, we run.
On the way back, I’ll stop at one of my favorite coffee shops like Coppola Cafe in the West Village where I’ll get an herbal tea before heading back to shower and dream up ideas for the day.
How does that help you throughout your day?
There is a lot of research about how walking helps people to think. My morning walks with Huck are thinking and planning time. They are responsible for my best ideas and my weird ideas and they help me to keep abreast of trends in the community. I think it’s a necessary part of being a creative and intellectual person — at least for me.
Central Park, Huck with a floral heart. Photo courtesy of Kristina Libby.
What else are you working on now?
I’m working on a book project on the idea of community that’s out looking for a publishing house home at the moment. I have a few public art ideas including one climate change data piece I’m excited about and an interesting one in Astor Place with the Greenwich Village Alliance. And, I’m very focused on trying to find an old messy property somewhere on a river to renovate and turn into a creative refuge.
But, they all relate to this idea I have around encouraging community. I’m experimenting with a lot of ideas because I want to help create a country and a world that is collaborative and meaningful and community-based. I think we’ve lost a sense of collective meaning and identity and I’d like to help fix that.
You sound like you do a lot of amazing and varied work. What keeps you so productive?
I think I’m powered on ideas. When I’m being creative and playing with ideas I’m productive. When I’m not, I crumble. So, I’m constantly on the hunt for novelty and newness and thoughts I’ve never seen expressed elsewhere. So, I walk a lot and I read a lot and I ask a lot of questions.
What does mindful productivity mean to you?
It means taking the time to say no to anything that doesn’t help you do what you want to do. So first step, have a vision of what you want to do for the world. Second, reject anything that doesn’t help you do that.
How else can people support Floral Heart Project?
Please follow on social media using #floralheartproject, follow@1800flowers and @lightvslight and consider purchasing a print or donating to help bring floral hearts to your community.
Follow all the artists and news about SpreadlightNYC @spreadlightnyc.
