Fleurs de Villes Brings Downton Abbey to Life at Prudential Center

The Prudential Center in Boston turned itself into a floral time capsule, creating Fleurs de Villes: Downton Abbey. The display, live Nov. 5-9, recreated the show’s most prominent characters as floral mannequins. There were 20 installations in total, with 16 inside Prudential Center, 2 at View Boston, 1 at the Sheraton Hotel, and 1 at Boston Marriott Copley Place.

Fleurs de Villes (French for “flowers of the cities”) is a global floral brand founded by Tina Barkley and Karen Marshall in 2015, bringing floral exhibitions to cities around the world. Fleurs de Villes made previous stops in Boston for “VOYAGE” in 2023 and “ARTISTE” in 2024. This year, the event added excursions such as “High Tea” and a “Mar-TEA-ni” event featuring floral cocktails at View Boston in Prudential Center.

Shoppers were transported into Downton Abbey as they followed the trail of characters through the mall, map and ballot in hand, knowing their votes would crown a Fan Favorite later in the week. They paused to take in the intricate floral gowns, tailored botanical suits, and accessories made entirely from flowers and other organic materials. Crowds gathered around the installations to admire the florists’ talent, marveling at the level of detail, from petals woven into hairpieces to personalized bags sculpted from flowers.

Downton Abbey is a British historical drama set on a grand Yorkshire estate between 1912 and 1926, where the lives of the aristocratic Crawley family and the servants who sustain their lifestyles become deeply intertwined. The show explores a society on the cusp of transformation, revealing how real-world events redefine tradition and challenge privilege. By combining fictional storylines and broader historical currents, the show portrays a society that’s been tied down by tradition, while facing a rapidly changing future.

The exhibition paired local florists with a member of the Crawley family or their staff, asking them to interpret their new floral costumes. The Florists did not get to choose their Downton Abbey characters. For many florists, it was their first time participating in Fleurs de Villes. In fact, many have only been in business for a couple of years.

Fleurs de Villes exhibitions are a great way to bring local art and businesses into a public space, giving florists a place to showcase their work, explore their creativity, and work on projects outside their daily commissions.

It was B.inBloom owner Bri Woodley’s first time participating in Fleurs de Villes. She was assigned Lady Mary Talbot, specifically when she wears a red silk dress after being named heir-apparent of Downton.

“My initial concept was that the front would be an English garden-inspired design with boxwood hedges, the style of gardens when the show starts, but also to represent the wall and strength she has to show,” Woodley said when describing her creative approach. “Each section was designed to depict her journey: calla lilies to represent her first marriage, roses leading toward an arch.”

She explained that she angled the mannequin toward the arch to illustrate the era she’s stepping into as the new heir in post-war England. To bring it together, Woodley created a bodice from cling wrap, masking tape, and rose petals, and a skirt shaped with chicken wire. To create the silky effect of Mary’s gown, she used preserved red hanging amaranthus on the skirt.

B.inBloom hopes viewers reflect on what Mary is walking away from and into, and consider what they’re stepping toward themselves.

Another first-year participant, Stems by Steph, created the floral mannequin of Tom Branson. Stephanie Nilovic, the owner of Stems by Steph (formerly Coleen’s Flower Shop), leaned into Tom’s chauffeur roots, using lush greenery that mimicked leather to dress him in his signature green uniform, complete with leather boots, gloves, and a hat.

Because his outfit is less of a statement than some of the Downton Abbey gowns, Stems by Steph decided to include a garden trellis overflowing with jeweled-toned florals.

“It really helped balance the scene and made our display while still feeling true to the world of Downton Abbey,” said Nilovic. More than that, the scene was meant to depict Tom’s transition from servant to family. “There’s something really charming about the garden setting. It feels grounded, honest, and human, which is what we wanted people to connect with.”

Nilovic shared that Tom Branson’s mannequin began as a shop-wide brainstorm about appearance and logistics.

Anna Bates was brought to life by the one-woman show at Florasara. Aliyah Sarah was asked to participate less than two weeks before the installation went live. One week out, Sarah had a rough sketch and was preparing for her design. The week leading up, she was able to create part of her outfit at home, but the skirt with a chicken wire structure required on-site construction. Her solo installation took over 10 hours at Prudential Center.

Any work of art has its fair share of run-ins with obstacles. Sarah replaced the petals on Anna’s bodice multiple times throughout the week when they wilted from the glue. Aside from that, all florists were required to visit their mannequin for maintenance every two days, replace wilted flowers, and replenish the flowers’ water supply. Sarah used foam blocks, called flower foam, to keep her florals hydrated.

Despite these hiccups, Anna’s character shone through. “She’s a very well-loved figure. She was a maid, but she had so many wonderful qualities, and I wanted to bring that out in my installation of her,” Sarah said. “Her uniform is simple, black and white, and quite plain, but I made sure to add color to the piece because I felt it represented her personality. She was full of great qualities, just a real joy.”

Mrs. Hughes was created by Bluebird Bouquets, a veteran of Fleurs de Villes. Owner Haley Irene drew inspiration from season four, episode 8, when Mrs. Hughes, the Downton Abbey housekeeper, sets up a fair.

“I wanted to make sure to include garlands, flags, and elements from the fair, like tables with cakes, jams, and lemonades,” Irene said. She spent weeks planning the design, selecting flowers in dark blacks, reds, and purples to complement the character’s understated elegance, while using tropical leaves for sleeves that would hold up well out of water.

Irene detailed the careful staging of her installation. Dried or long-lasting materials were prepared in advance, while fresh florals were installed the day of, alongside cone-shaped water holders that she refilled daily. Like Aliyah Sarah from Florasara, Irene had to replace wilted petals due to the heat and visitors touching the display.

“Your typical couple isn’t looking for a full floral mannequin, so this gave me a chance to show a different side of my creativity,” said Irene. “The exposure to different people, and having so many people post the design and share it and tag us, is huge. I now have private workshops that I’m doing with different businesses that have offices in Prudential.”

Lydia Thein from Moon Gate Garden set up shop at Boston Marriott Copley Place to bring the Dowager Countess of Grantham to life.

“I was so excited to receive this character,” Thein said. “I had watched Downton Abbey, and I loved Maggie Smith’s performance.”

Thein explained that she combined spiky Sea Holly to represent her “prickly” side, with soft florals, to showcase her gentle side.

“She comes off as a little bit old-fashioned, but she also has this soft side to her,” Thein explained. “She obviously cares very much about her family.”

While shedding light on the design and installation process, Thein explained that she received her flowers only a couple of days before the exhibition (to ensure freshness), so the building process was very short. Besides structural materials, florists were not allowed to use anything other than flowers, Thein explained. Florists could use organic materials such as ferns and moss, as well as dried botanicals. So, if a mannequin was wearing feathers or jewelry, they were made out of organic materials.

This was the first time Moon Gate Garden participated in Fleurs de Villes. “I only started my business two years ago, and we’re primarily a flower truck where you can pick your own bouquet, and then I do small weddings,” Thein explained. “So this stretched my skill set for sure.”

It was announced on Nov. 10 that Bluebird Bouquets’ Mrs. Hughes had won the Fan Favorite contest. In second place was The Petite Posy’s Lady Edith Crawley, and in third place, Petal Pushers Floral Studio’s Mrs. Patmore.

If you weren’t able to attend the event, here are the other mannequins featured in the mall.

Martha Levinson by en.twine