Some dreams arrive all at once.
Others take years to introduce themselves.
The story of Art in Bloom DC began long before the first flower was placed inside Anderson House. It began with a question that Ashley Greer could not stop asking.
During her first year working at what was then one of Washington's newest and most exciting flower shops, Ashley immersed herself in learning everything she could about floral design. Like many young designers, she spent countless hours studying the work of leading floral artists, reading industry publications, and searching for ideas that were redefining the profession.
That was when she discovered Bouquets to Art at the de Young Museum in San Francisco and Art in Bloom at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
She was captivated.
The concept was beautifully simple: floral designers each selected a work of art from a museum's collection and created a botanical interpretation of it. For a few days each year, paintings, sculpture, and decorative arts were joined by living works of art made entirely of flowers.
To Ashley, the idea felt almost inevitable.
Which immediately led to another question.
Why didn't Washington, D.C., have one?
The nation's capital is home to some of the world's greatest museums, an extraordinary community of floral designers, and a culture deeply rooted in art, history, diplomacy, and philanthropy. It seemed like the perfect city for an Art in Bloom exhibition.
Yet none existed.
That question stayed with Ashley for years.
She researched Art in Bloom exhibitions across the country and eventually traveled to Boston to experience one firsthand. Seeing the exhibition in person only strengthened her conviction. The conversations taking place between flowers and fine art, the excitement of the visitors, and the creativity of the designers confirmed what she already believed.
Washington deserved its own Art in Bloom.
What followed was nearly a decade of persistence.
Ashley sent proposals to museum after museum. Some emails received polite responses. Many received none at all. Whenever leadership changed at an institution, she saw another opportunity, revised her proposal, and tried again.
The answer was almost always the same.
Not now.
Looking back, Ashley often reflects that she spent years carrying a dream that no one else could yet see.
At times, another fear quietly followed alongside that dream.
The idea seemed too obvious—and too good—to remain undiscovered forever. She worried another florist would eventually make the same proposal and create Washington's Art in Bloom before she ever had the chance.
Then Ashley read Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert.
One idea from the book changed her perspective. Gilbert describes ideas almost as living things—moving through the world searching for someone willing to bring them to life. If one person ignores an idea for too long, perhaps it simply finds someone else.
Whether taken literally or simply as a metaphor, the lesson resonated.
Ashley realized she could spend years worrying someone else might build the dream.
Or she could spend those years becoming the person who would be ready when the opportunity finally arrived.
Eight years after first discovering Art in Bloom, Ashley had opened Atelier Ashley Flowers. While building her business, she intentionally devoted herself to expanding her professional network. She attended receptions, accepted invitations, volunteered with cultural organizations, and met museum professionals, historians, event planners, philanthropists, and community leaders.
She came to understand something that would prove essential to Art in Bloom's future:
The best opportunities rarely arrive through cold emails. They arrive through relationships.
One afternoon, a friend named Joanie introduced Ashley to Glenn Hennessey, who oversaw weddings and events at Anderson House. They sat together on the back porch sharing a glass of rosé while talking about the history of the house and the events it hosted.
As the conversation was coming to a close, Ashley almost left without mentioning the idea she had been carrying for so many years.
Almost.
Before saying goodbye, she casually described the Art in Bloom concept and explained how she had spent years trying to bring it to Washington.
Glenn paused.
Ashley still remembers the moment.
It was as if a light switched on.
After only a few seconds, he looked at her and asked a question that would change the course of the next decade.
"What if Anderson House is the perfect place to do it?"
In that single moment, a dream that had survived years of silence, rejection, and uncertainty found another believer.
That conversation would eventually become the foundation of Art in Bloom DC—a celebration of art, flowers, history, and the remarkable creative community that continues to grow around it.
The rest, as they say, is history.