Shot! The 2026 Chichester Cathedral Festival of Flowers
Who knew that contemplating floral installations in an ancient cathedral could have a profound effect on your soul?
Sixty floral displays. Nine hundred and fifty years of stone. For four days in June, a place of reverence and worship became something else entirely.
This was my first time seeing the Festival of Flowers at Chichester Cathedral, so I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. Plenty of floral arrangements, for sure – but how good they’d be, how they were displayed, and how many would be needed to hold their own within a cavernous 11th century cathedral, were questions I had going in.
It was also my first time setting foot inside the cathedral itself, notable for being the only medieval English cathedral whose spire – the third tallest in the country – is visible from the sea.
What I witnessed was quite the surprise. More than sixty oversize floral displays spread throughout the building, some hanging from the roof, others laid out in front of its surprisingly vibrant tapestries – themselves added in the 1960s to bring colour to the otherwise drab and gloomy High Altar.
Each display was creatively integrated into the very fabric of the building. Not free-standing or simply placed in front of something, but flowing in and around pillars, recesses and even crypts, their composition and flower selection chosen to reflect and complement the space they occupied.
Here, under the well-chosen theme of Nature’s Embrace, the floristry literally embraced the cathedral’s distinctive cream-hued Caen stone – sometimes looking as though it had always been part of the building’s fabric, at other times playing on the juxtaposition of vibrant blooms against muted walls.
Having had the opportunity to briefly chat with lead designer Caroline Daines, it became clear that this iteration of the Festival of Flowers was entirely her vision. She brought a wedding florist’s instinct for cohesion and emotion to a space that could easily overwhelm. It didn’t.
I learnt she was responsible not only for choosing the locations and conceiving each display, but for ordering the 50,000 blooms used by various ‘arrangers’ to interpret her brief. That cohesion showed in how beautifully integrated everything felt.
With 2026 marking thirty years of this biennial tradition, this anniversary edition felt like it knew the weight of that history.
My most praiseworthy displays
If I had to pick my favourites, the three standout displays for me all happened to be white – the colour most heavily associated not just with purity, holiness and innocence, but with resurrection itself.
That association gave the white displays, particularly around the Arundel Tomb, a particular and perhaps unintentional resonance.
The tomb, of course, is the subject of Philip Larkin’s most celebrated poem, inspired by the sculpted figures of an earl and countess lying hand in hand across the centuries. “What will survive of us is love,” Larkin wrote.
Standing before the delicate woodland-themed installation that surrounded it, that line felt less like poetry and more like an annotation.
By contrast, my other favourites were the minimalist spray of white alliums within the Treasury Alcove, and the large cloud-like central display of voluminous white hydrangeas (which symbolise unconditional devotion), white alliums and baby’s breath (gypsophila) in front of the colourful Piper Tapestry at the High Altar.
But flowers weren’t the only revelation.
Three other discoveries surprised and impressed me – all, as it happens, were red.
The first was a stunning stained glass window by Marc Chagall. Yes – one of the world’s most celebrated artists contributed to the cathedral’s remarkable collection of modern art.
You’d be forgiven for not knowing it, as the window is tucked away in the wall of the north quire aisle, invisible from the outside, requiring the visitor to venture deep into the building to find it.
Unlike the other works, which are connected to chapels and their altars, the Chagall sits apart – more like a painting in a gallery than a devotional object, an invitation to personal contemplation rather than collective worship.
The story of how it came to be there is as compelling as the window itself.
It was thanks to the persistence of Walter Hussey, the cathedral’s dean, who first approached the artist in 1955, having been impressed by Chagall’s work in the Louvre. However, commissioning it required the patience of a saint, for it was not until after Hussey’s retirement, twenty-two years later, that Chagall finally agreed.
The theme – the 150th Psalm, subtitled The Arts to the Glory of God – was Hussey’s suggestion.
For the flower festival, the 1978 window became the source of a spectacular floral waterfall, the vibrant reds and blues of Chagall’s glass contrasting with the blues of the installation as if the pairing had always been inevitable.
The second red discovery was a lot smaller, a humble berry.
I first spotted strawberries within the Lady Chapel, on a display by Hannah Howell, inspired by the classic novel The Secret Garden. They looked picture-perfect – too good to be real. But they were, and what’s more, they were grown just down the road by The Summer Berry Co, one of the country’s most innovative growers, producing perfectly ripe strawberries twelve months a year. I got to taste one and can confirm they were every bit as good as they looked.
It may not have quite been a religious experience – though the delicate, heart-shaped berry has always carried connotations of purity, passion and healing.
As the 17th century English physician Dr William Butler once wrote: “Doubtless God could have made a better berry, but doubtless God never did.”
And then there was a mostly red floral display whose colours mirrored a provocative Graham Sutherland painting in the Chapel of St Mary Magdalene.
Entitled Noli me Tangere (Don’t Touch Me), this was another colourful modern artwork commissioned by Walter Hussey.
A Confirmation
Surprising art and scrumptious strawberries aside, I came away from Chichester Cathedral far more impressed than I’d ever expected.
This could easily have been something closer to what you might imagine the Women’s Institute would put on. In truth, it was closer to some of the most technically ambitious floristry you might encounter at the Chelsea Flower Show.
Medieval cathedrals were built to overwhelm the senses as a path to the spiritual – and there’s a case to be made that fifty thousand blooms achieved something remarkably similar. The Festival of Flowers, perhaps unknowingly, sits squarely within that tradition.
As the distinguished American botanist Luther Burbank once observed: “Flowers always make people better, happier and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul.”
If anything, my visit was a confirmation of just what floral displays can bring, especially when the vision behind them is both playful and tasteful in equal measure.
A Few Thoughts for Next Time
I do wish I’d had a better sense of what I was seeing in the moment. There were no interpretive notes, and rather than being guided around, I was left to wander and discover for myself. I appreciated much of what I’d photographed only afterwards, once I’d done a little research of my own. A simple printed guide – or even a QR code at each display – would have enriched the experience considerably.
My other gripe was with the signage. Consistently positioned too close to the displays and often too high, it was difficult to photograph without it intruding on the frame. A small thing, perhaps, but a frustrating one for anyone with a camera in hand.
I’d also suggest that having a large floral display outside the cathedral – perhaps the event’s branding realised in flowers – would go a long way toward communicating what lies within.
Without seeing it for yourself, few could have imagined just how spectacularly the building had been transformed.
What I do know is that without those 50,000 blooms, the cathedral will look a whole lot less glorious. And another two years is way too long to have to wait to repeat the experience.
Behind the shot: All these images were taken handheld, mainly with the iPhone 16 Pro and a few with the Olympus OM-D E-M1. As always, it was all about seeking the most interesting subjects and then looking to find the most compelling compositions. Photographed at Chichester Cathedral on 2 June 2026.
About the author: Based in Sussex-by-the-Sea, on England’s south coast, Gary is a creative writer and image-maker. He specialises in creating out-of-the-ordinary portraits of musicians and people with interesting faces, as well as photographing some of the world’s finest flowers and gardens, not forgetting an array of automotive exotica.
On the writing side, he has used his research skills to author deep dives into some noteworthy songs beginning with Bryan Ferry’s ‘These Foolish Things’, ‘Ghost Town’ by The Specials, ‘Real Wild Child’ by Ivan and ‘All The Young Dudes’ by Mott the Hoople.
He has also written a biography of Robert Palmer and the stories behind Whitesnake’s blatant Led Zep rip-off, ‘Still Of The Night’, Harry Styles’ anthem to positivity, ‘Treat People With Kindness’ and the little-known Queen track ‘Cool Cat.’
Most recently, Gary has penned the fascinating story behind George Orwell’s dystopian novel ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four,’ as well as ‘Believe It Or Not’, a look into the rise of fake news.
All these can be found here on Medium, along with his reviews of gigs and events and chats with musicians including the likes of Royal Blood, Joe Satriani and Wolf Alice.
