I was very pleased to be invited to participate in the second annual show of “Planters on And Off The Ground” at the Longhouse Reserve. The show ties together outdoor art and horticulture. For me it was an opportunity to present a combination of concrete and wood. I was less certain how to handle the plants. I decided that I wanted the raw power of the planters to be front and center. I chose decorative grasses and a miniature lavender to satisfy the living part of the presentation.

There were a number of awards handed out at the opening night reception. I was honored to have a ribbon but I immediately envied my fellow exhibitors with two ribbons. During the awards presentation P. Allen Smith, the juror and MC, announced that the single ribbon indicated a second place. It was a shared honor but i no longer had ribbon envy. My attention turned to P. Allen Smiths critique of the ribbon winners. To paraphrase, he was struck by the combination of concrete and wood. He was aware that this would be a challenge for the long term in the garden but he did not much care since the results were “sublime”. I came back down to earth when he chastised my selection for the plants. He thought the grass was a good choice but the lavender was a mistake. I have work to do before next year!

I had to check on my bench while I was at he Longhouse Reserve . We had a string of brutal weather since I had installed the bench. The finish was holding up very well.

It was made very clear to me that i could expect a bird to poop on the bench at the rate of about once a day.

They were true to their word on this day!

By Nico Yektai -
New York based designer/maker Nico Yektai opened the doors to his Hamptons studio in 1995 after completing the MFA program at the School For American Craft at the Rochester Institute of Technology. The rigorous technical training complimented his background in Art History, which he studied, at Hobart College in Geneva NY. Yektai has synthesized this background into a singular style that has gained him national attention. Visit nicoyektai.com for more information