AvA Spring/Summer 2020 is a boldly feminine collection whose roots lie in the gardens of Ala’s past leading up to her blooms of today. It’s a departure from the fiery tones and prints of Resort, with an air of easy romance that comes only with the warmer season. The earthy Nicotiana print, for example, is taken directly from tobacco flowers decorating Ala’s own property in Water Mill, where she spends much of her time painting.
Floral Fixation
Go Inside the Spring/Summer 2020 Collection
“Much of the collection is inspired by my garden on Long Island,” Ala says. “The tobacco flower specifically is just wonderful, especially towards the end of the summer. I love its form and its scent.”
Other prints like the sweetly delicate Gardenia, with tones of pink and lilac, goes back to Ala’s grandmother’s gardens in Newport, a landscape steeped in Ala’s memory that she calls upon season after season. “When I was a child, my grandmother had the most beautiful Gardenia tree with these enormous blossoms,” Ala says. “They must have been six inches across - they were like saucers. Thinking of her gardenias makes me nostalgic for those times. The drawing was an homage to that."
Lastly, the Calathea print is inspired by Ala’s own curiosity after discovering the zebra plant with her florist in New York. With its cascading shapes of black, white it was certainly something different to explore. “I thought the geometry and color were just really cool,” Ala says. “Sometimes I'm attracted to shapes that are just asking to be drawn.”