Web Exclusive :: Nashville's Chic Swan Ball at Cheekwood

Ball Chair Frances Spradley with her co-chair Kathy Thomas

Joe Smith is a veteran floral designer widely considered the "go-to-guy" for dazzlingly divine weddings and superb special events in Middle Tennessee for more than 30 years; however, he just recently made his "freshman" debut as Head Designer for the 2009 Swan Ball, Nashville's premiere white-tie benefit for the Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art.

Smith, unlike many first-timers, readily confessed to learning something while digging into the planning process for the Ball. Several months into the project, while working toward the unveiling of the 47th Ball's "look," he was taken aside and sweetly educated by one of Nashville's foremost garden gurus, who imparted this bit of wisdom: "If you're going to talk about your fabulous Swan Ball theme and design, then you must pronounce the name correctly—it's clematis, my dear; accent on the first syllable."

From that moment forward, the affable Smith and his team at Ilex for Flowers enunciated with precision, putting the emphasis on "clem" while ensuring that "tis," of course, rhymed with "kiss." And so the Queen of the Vines, the wondrous white climbing kind, offered both a learning experience for Smith, as well as the signature inspiration for the Ball's creative concept.

Because Smith's trademark look has long been one of restrained elegance imbued with a brush of grand simplicity, Ball Chair Frances Spradley and her co-chair Kathy Thomas wisely sought the expertise of this floral industry leader when it came to executing their vision. With a deft touch, Smith began with a 17th century English garden foundation, which he cross-pollinated with a dash of Asian influences, before adding a twist of wild patterning to his carefully crafted, freshly modern mix.

As the guests entered the historic Cheek mansion the night of June 13th, they were greeted by an ethereal Angel Swan sculpture, covered in white rose petals, poised for taking flight. The très chic ladies and gentlemen floated up the Museum's monumental, circular staircase, across the loggia and into an immense tent, its walls bedecked with yard-upon-yard of diaphanous, dove-gray fabric, gathered like the skirt of a billowing Balmain gown. Complemented by a plush, obsidian-hued carpet, The Chinoiserie Bar showcased Asian-inspired, hand painted screens embellished with white clematis, hummingbirds, butterflies, and other Oriental imagery. Two colossal white jardinières, lavished with white delphinium and ringed with moss, served as floral beacons on lighted pedestals, drawing attendees toward the dining entrance.

But, it was the pagoda-shaded chandeliers draped with crystals that shone brightly as the sparkling focal points. Having seen a petite version of the fixture elsewhere, Joe Smith, convinced it would enhance the Ball's traditional décor while underscoring its Asian flair, commissioned Nashville's Visual Elements to create the perfect pair for this year's Ball.

"Everything was ALL Nashville," Joe noted. "Because there is such incredible talent here, we used only local resources."

A polished, pearly dance floor, lined with white benches cushioned with white bolsters, served as the dais for honoring Nashville's own Martha Rivers Ingram with the coveted Swan Award and platform for Grammy-Award winner and Nashville resident LeAnn Rimes' performance. Fourteen-foot ornamental "trees" featured hand-painted birch trunks capped with spheres of Southern privet and stood like sentinels in Chippendale planters, sharply defining the space.

More than 600 guests dined at round tables draped in crisp white linen overskirts and accompanied by white-cushioned Chivari chairs. Some tables held tall silver lamps, set off by pagoda shades and topped with pale green jade finials, entwined in boxwood foliage and clematis, while other tables were "simplicity itself," sporting square, white lotus containers graced with "nothing but clematis" and the glow of square crystal votives. Square onyx plates completed the fusion look.

Five lattice-wood "vistas," their panes tightly packed with boxwood (an idea Smith imported from Britain's Chelsea Flower Show) and flanked by smaller ornamentals, were strategically positioned to showcase their pièce de résistance—an Angel Swan, dramatically lit to reveal the profusion of white Phalaenopsis spilling from its nest.

The "Chicwood" Lounge, just off the dining room, supplied the design's exclamation point with black sectional sofas and acrylic-topped, triangular cabaret tables with arrow bases (replicas of a French design). Pilasters holding clear vases massed with green and white Anthuriums anchored either side of the mirrored bar and a bold, zebra-patterned carpet furnished the Ball's avant-garde punch.

Simply put, the event was a white-on-black knockout. Who knew one could do quite so much with clematis—a simple member of the Buttercup family?

Summer 2009 | By Leigh Hendry and Gloria Houghland, Photos by Peyton Hoge