Floral Designer is Turning NYC Trash Cans into Giant Vases Overflowing with Flowers

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

New York City-based floral designer Lewis Miller has proven his plant-y prowess by transforming the city's grimy garbage cans into larger-than-life flower vases. Called Flower Flashes, the elegant arrangements beautify the busy streets with their bright colors and delightful designs.

As the owner of Lewis Miller Design, a company that specializes in floral design and decoration, the ambitious artist has ample blooms at his disposal. Armed with flowers leftover from events, Miller and his team take to the streets to adorn trashcans with exquisitely-arranged bouquets. Each colorful creation boldly contrasts the gritty grey tones of the sidewalk, and quite literally turns the trash into a treasure that all can enjoy. “Gifting flowers to New Yorkers is a simple idea that I have been thinking about for years,” Lewis explains on the Lewis Miller Design website. “I am in the business of fantasy and flowers, and it’s my job to transform key moments in my clients’ lives into joyful, everlasting memories. I wanted to recreate a similar feeling for the everyday city-dwellers and tourists of New York City.”

In addition to his remarkable receptacle makeovers, Miller also improves the local scenery by placing cut flowers on statues, sculptures, and other public works of art. With the same goal in mind—”to try to create an emotional response through flowers”—these Flower Flashes reimagine well-known (and, consequently, often overlooked) sites into stunning sites blooming with color.

Each trash can vase created by Lewis Miller of Lewis Miller Design adds a bit of beauty to the streets of New York.

  Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

In addition to these trash can flowers, Lewis Miller's other Flower Flashes embellish public art throughout the city.

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Trash Can Flower Vase Trash Can Flowers Trash Can Vase Flower Flashes Lewis Miller Design

Lewis Miller Design: Website | Instagram
h/t: [Gothamist, Vogue]

All images via Lewis Miller Design.

Kelly Richman-Abdou

Kelly Richman-Abdou was a Contributing Writer at My Modern Met. An art historian living in Paris, Kelly was born and raised in San Francisco and holds a BA in Art History from the University of San Francisco and an MA in Art and Museum Studies from Georgetown University. When she’s not writing, you can find Kelly wandering around Paris, whether she’s leading a tour (as a guide, she has been interviewed by BBC World News America and France 24) or simply taking a stroll with her husband and two tiny daughters.
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