Man Who Works Magic With Flowers
This is the seventh in a series of interviews with accomplished Koreans in the United States. - ED.
By Jane Han
Korea Times Correspondent
NEW YORK - Heidi Klum, Alec Baldwin and hundreds of other celebrity guests danced, laughed and celebrated at the 61st Emmy Awards Governors Ball, the famous after-party that follows American TV's biggest night every year.
Everything fell into place at the Los Angeles Convention Center, just like Kevin Lee had envisioned when he first entered the giant, empty venue months earlier.
Once again, he knew his choice of flowers would be just right.
"We used nearly 9,000 orchids, 20,000 roses, 3,000 pheasant and peacock feathers, 1,200 succulent plants, 400 cubic feet of mood moss - all arranged on and around 600 colorfully-painted Manzanita branches," said Lee, celebrity florist and designer for the Emmy, Oscar and Grammy parties.
"Our intent was to create magic and movement, individual worlds for each table throughout the event," he said in an interview with The Korea Times, "and that's what we delivered."
The Korean-born floral designer, a man known to have a super flamboyant persona, is a trusted and go-to name in Hollywood. His high-profile clients include Oprah Winfrey, Keanu Reeves, Tom Cruise, Wolfgang Puck and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, to name a few.
Lee has worked on everything from Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston's wedding, dozens of movie premiers to Michael Jackson's memorial service. He also created the looks for Drew Barrymore, Kendra Wilkinson and Christina Aguilera's weddings.
"I remember Christina's wedding so vividly," recalled Lee of the three-day event held in California's Napa Valley. "Enchanted Italian Vineyard, Chic Pink Japanese Garden and Winter Crystal Wonderland were the inspirations for my three separate designs."
Lee's natural way with flowers makes it seem like he was born for the job. But how his career started was more out of coincidence and necessity than anything else.
After immigrating to the U.S. in 1979 with his family, Lee had to juggle all kinds of odd jobs for a living. Rarely did he sleep for more than three hours a night, until a stint at a florist changed everything.
He slept even less, but discovered his passion.
"I fell in love with the work," Lee said. "I spent sleepless nights rearranging the showroom to look perfect. In fact, I don't even remember sleeping at all sometimes. I just wanted to design and create new and innovative styles."
After learning the craft for six years, Lee opened his boutique, LA Premier, in 1986.
With more than 20 years in the business, Lee says his career is only getting better.
Besides his main boutique, he runs a line of wedding and party accessories. Lee is also a design consultant for weddings at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul. Plus, he squeezes in time to teach and train Korean students in the U.S. who dream of becoming floral designers.
With all these projects and a long line of A-list clientele to work with, imagine what kind of schedule Lee handles daily.
"I travel around the world, meet the most incredible people and design for some of the most elite events," said the 55-year-old, who stresses that he is constantly seeking new inspiration.
"I like to start trends, rather than follow current standards," said the designer. "Flowers - it's all about the whole vision, something fabulous and stunning."