The Art of Gathering: Why We Need to Come Together
On the ancient human instinct to gather, the beauty of seasonal living, and the role of flowers, nature and ritual in creating meaningful experiences.
When I was younger, I was often found revelling in the energy of a celebration. A wedding, a village festival, a school sports day - anywhere people came together, something seemed to draw me in. I was sometimes considered an enigmatic child, when really, I think I was simply attuned to the joy of those around me and the natural environments in which I found myself.
I imagine many of us remember this feeling from childhood. The excitement of a shared occasion, the warmth of being amongst others, the sense that something special was happening. We carry this feeling into adulthood through our friendships, families and communities, yet somewhere along the way, amidst the pace and pressures of modern life, it can become a little diluted.
For me, this early fascination grew into a belief that gathering is one of the most fundamental parts of being human. When we come together with a shared intention - to celebrate, to create, to mark a moment in time or simply to enjoy one another's company - something meaningful can happen.
As I grew older, my love of gathering developed alongside a passion for hosting, nature, art and flowers. I studied International Event Management at university, hoping to find a way to create these feelings for others. I went on to build a career in the events industry, learning how to bring people together and transform ideas into experiences.
Yet, over time, I began to question something. In our increasingly fast-paced, commercially driven world, have we lost a little of the art of gathering?
Have we forgotten the meaning of gathering?
There are, of course, extraordinary events taking place around the world every day. Beautiful celebrations, thoughtful experiences and ambitious productions that bring people together in remarkable ways. The events industry is full of talented people who dedicate themselves to creating something memorable.
But I have often felt that the emphasis of modern gatherings can shift towards performance rather than presence, and appearance rather than connection. We can become so preoccupied with how an occasion will look, how it will be documented or how it will be perceived that we risk overlooking the feeling at its heart.
We see it in the desire for the perfect tablescape, the most photographable backdrop or the most impressive event styling. These things can undoubtedly be beautiful. Flowers, thoughtful design and carefully considered details can elevate an occasion and make people feel special. But what if the true measure of a gathering was not how it looked in photographs, but how people felt when they were there?
What if we placed as much intention on the atmosphere we create as the aesthetic we curate?
For me, this is where the real art of gathering begins: with presence, purpose and the simple act of making space for one another.
Gathering is part of being human
Long before modern event design, curated celebrations and carefully styled occasions, humans gathered around fires, shared meals, told stories and marked the passing of time together.
Gathering was essential to survival. Sharing knowledge, distributing tasks, caring for one another and passing wisdom between generations helped communities to flourish. Stories carried practical knowledge, cultural memory and a sense of belonging. Food was shared, traditions were passed down, and collective experiences helped shape the identities of groups and societies.
In Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Yuval Noah Harari (2014) explores how shared stories and imagined realities helped Homo Sapiens cooperate in large groups. Our ability to communicate, create shared meaning and believe in something together became an important part of humanity's development.
Gathering, then, has never been solely about being in the same place as other people. It has also been about creating a shared understanding of the world.
Across cultures and generations, communal rituals have marked some of life's most significant transitions: births, marriages, deaths, harvests, seasonal changes and spiritual celebrations. These occasions provide opportunities to acknowledge change, strengthen relationships and remind us that our individual lives are part of something larger.
We still do this today, whether we realise it or not. We gather around a table for a birthday dinner, light candles to mark a milestone, bring flowers to a loved one, or meet with friends to celebrate the arrival of spring.
These gestures may seem ordinary, but they hold meaning. They give shape to our lives and allow us to pause long enough to recognise the moments that matter.
The importance of ritual and the changing seasons
One of the most beautiful things about gathering is its relationship with ritual.
Anthropologist Arnold van Gennep, in The Rites of Passage (1909), explored how rituals help people navigate transitions in life. He described three stages: separation from an existing role, a transitional period between identities, and reincorporation into a new stage of life.
Victor Turner later developed these ideas, exploring the importance of liminal spaces - those moments when we step outside our ordinary routines and enter a different kind of experience. Festivals, ceremonies and collective celebrations can create these spaces, allowing us to reflect, connect and experience the world differently.
I find this particularly compelling when thinking about the role of seasonal living in our modern lives.
Nature is full of transitions. The first signs of spring, the abundance of summer, the gradual turning of autumn and the quietness of winter each offer a different invitation. Yet our contemporary lives can make it easy to move from one month to the next without truly noticing these changes.
Seasonal gatherings offer a way to reconnect.
A spring floral workshop, an autumn supper club, a summer celebration beneath the trees or a winter gathering around a candlelit table can become more than an enjoyable occasion. They can create a moment of pause - an opportunity to acknowledge the season, reflect on where we are and share that experience with others.
This is the beauty of seasonal rituals. They need not be elaborate or rooted in any particular belief system. They simply invite us to become more attentive to the natural world and to the rhythms that exist beyond our everyday routines.
The feeling of being part of something bigger
Have you ever stood in a crowd at a concert, sung alongside hundreds of strangers or found yourself swept up in the collective excitement of a sporting event?
For a moment, the boundaries between individuals seem to soften. People move together, share emotions and experience an extraordinary sense of belonging. We may arrive as strangers, yet leave feeling connected by something we experienced collectively.
Sociologist Émile Durkheim described this phenomenon as collective effervescence in his work The Elementary Forms of Religious Life (1912). The term captures the heightened energy and sense of solidarity that can emerge when people participate in a shared social ritual.
Although Durkheim explored this idea in the context of religion and collective life, it also offers a useful lens through which to consider modern gatherings.
We do not need to be part of a huge crowd to experience this feeling. It can emerge around a dinner table, during a shared creative activity, at a community celebration or while making something beautiful alongside others.
Sometimes, it is found in the laughter that carries through a room. Sometimes, it is in a moment of quiet understanding, a shared story or the simple pleasure of being somewhere we feel welcome.
These moments cannot be manufactured through event styling alone. They emerge through the relationships, atmosphere and shared experiences that an occasion makes possible.
As our lives become increasingly shaped by technology and digital communication, I believe there is something deeply valuable in creating opportunities to be together in person - to use our senses, share our attention and experience something beyond the individual self.
Flowers, food, music and the language of gathering
If gathering is a language, it is one spoken through many different forms.
Food invites us to share. Music brings people into rhythm with one another. Light can transform a familiar room into somewhere intimate and atmospheric. Nature offers a sense of perspective, while flowers introduce colour, texture, fragrance and symbolism into the spaces we inhabit.
This is where my love of floristry and floral design finds its deeper meaning.
Flowers have long been woven into the rituals of human life. They accompany weddings, funerals, celebrations, seasonal festivals and gestures of affection. Their meanings vary across cultures and traditions, but their presence often helps us express feelings that words alone cannot quite capture.
Seasonal flowers also connect us to a particular time and place. The first spring blossom, the abundance of summer garden flowers, the sculptural seed heads of autumn and the evergreen textures of winter each carry their own character.
Working with seasonal flowers encourages us to appreciate what is available now, rather than seeking the same things all year round. It invites us to notice the details of nature, to embrace imperfection and to find beauty in change.
For Bloomfolk, flowers are more than decoration. They are one of the ways we help shape an experience - creating atmosphere, encouraging conversation and bringing a sense of place to a gathering.
From thoughtful event flowers and natural tablescapes to immersive floral workshops, the intention is always to create something that feels connected to its surroundings and meaningful to the people who experience it.
The same philosophy extends to the food we share, the music we choose, the spaces we inhabit and the rituals we create together. Each element has the potential to contribute to a richer, more sensory experience.
Creating space for meaningful gatherings today
I do not believe that we need to abandon modern life or return to an imagined past to rediscover the art of gathering. Nor do I believe that every occasion needs to be a carefully planned event.
Sometimes, the most meaningful gatherings are the simplest: inviting friends for supper, arranging flowers from the garden, taking a seasonal walk or making time for a conversation without distractions.
Other occasions benefit from a little more intention. A community event can bring people together around a shared interest. A creative workshop can offer the pleasure of learning something new alongside others. A thoughtfully planned retreat can provide space to step away from familiar routines, reconnect with nature and return to everyday life with a renewed perspective.
What connects these experiences is not their size, style or setting. It is the intention behind them.
When we create space to slow down, participate and connect, we allow an occasion to become more than a date in the diary. We give it the opportunity to become a shared memory, a meaningful ritual or the beginning of a new relationship.
For those of us creating events, workshops and retreats, this asks us to think beyond logistics and aesthetics. It invites us to consider how people will feel when they arrive, what they might experience together and what they may carry with them when they leave.
Beautiful design still matters. So do the flowers, the food, the setting and all the thoughtful details that make an occasion feel special. But these elements are at their most powerful when they serve a deeper purpose: bringing people closer to themselves, to one another and to the world around them.
Why I created Bloomfolk
Bloomfolk was born from this belief.
I wanted to create something that brought together my love of flowers, nature, hosting and creative experiences with a deeper appreciation for why we gather in the first place.
Bloomfolk is a nature-inspired creative studio centred on floral design, gatherings, workshops and retreats. Through seasonal flowers, thoughtful event styling and considered experiences, we create opportunities for people to come together with greater intention.
Our work spans floral arrangements and event flowers, intimate celebrations, seasonal workshops, community gatherings, creative experiences and retreats. Each offers a different way to explore the relationship between nature, creativity and connection.
We believe that the most meaningful experiences are not necessarily the grandest. They are the ones that make us feel present, welcomed and connected. The ones that encourage us to notice the season, appreciate the people around us and find beauty in the everyday.
At Bloomfolk, we believe beauty and sensory experiences are most powerful when created with intention. We believe in community, creativity, connection and a deeper appreciation for ourselves, one another and the natural world.
Flowers may be one of our languages, but they are not the whole story. Food, music, nature, ritual, conversation and shared experiences all have a part to play.
Ultimately, Bloomfolk is an invitation to gather a little more thoughtfully. To celebrate the changing seasons, create space for meaningful connection and remember that we are all living in the same extraordinary world.
And perhaps that is reason enough to come together.
Gather beautifully. Live seasonally. Connect meaningfully.
Explore Bloomfolk's floral design, gatherings and seasonal workshops, or discover more about our forthcoming retreats. Whether you are planning an intimate celebration, a creative workshop, a community gathering or a nature-led retreat, we would love to hear what you have in mind.
