When most couples envision their wedding, it often includes a warm locale—perhaps even a beach—and plenty of family and friends. Well, it’s safe to say that Brian Patrick Flynn and Hollis Smith are not most couples. The Atlanta-based duo tied the knot last December atop an ice floe while on a cruise in Antarctica. The only guests were four polar experts (the expedition leader officiated).
Brian, a television producer and interior designer who currently works on HGTV Dream Home and HGTV Urban Oasis, had dreamed of visiting Antarctica since childhood. Plus, he says, “We didn’t want to deal with venues and guest lists and overall project management, since that’s what we do all day long.” (Hollis works in costume design for television shows, including The Walking Dead.) So, Brian thought, why not combine their ideal wedding with his long-time bucket list trip?
In fact, that’s pretty much the way Brian proposed to Hollis, his boyfriend of almost a decade. He had originally booked the cruise as a way to celebrate turning 40, a full year and a half before the milestone birthday. “About three months after paying for it, I started to think that we should get married,” Brian says. “I said to him randomly, ‘how do you feel about us getting married in Antarctica?’” Once the plan was in place, he confirmed with their travel company, Swoop Antarctica, that someone on the ship would be able to conduct the ceremony.
Their journey first took them to Chile, flying to Santiago and then on to Patagonia, where they explored Torres del Paine and set up an epic engagement shoot. From there, they flew to Punta Arenas, in Chile’s southernmost region; rather than board a ship that would take them through the notoriously rough Drake’s Passage, they splurged on the two-hour flight to King George Island to begin their Antarctic voyage.
The scientists on board all knew Brian and Hollis were going to be getting married at some point during their eight days at sea, but they weren’t sure where and when, as so much in arctic travel is dependent on weather. Luckily, on the day they reached the iceberg-filled Lemaire Channel, “It just so happened that the conditions were perfect,” Brian says.
With his background in costume design, Hollis had been tasked with selecting the day-of attire. Taking into consideration the backdrop of icy blue, white, and black, he chose a merlot-toned velvet jacket and black pants for Brian. For himself, “it was the perfect excuse to wear a three-piece navy Dolce & Gabbana tuxedo with chestnut trim that I had bought on a whim about a year prior,” he says. As for their coats, those were found at Zara by a friend of Brian's, a former fashion producer from his days on TBS’s Movie and a Makeover.
On December 15th, they donned their outfits and boarded a Zodiac, which took them to an ice floe for the low-key nondenominational ceremony. Brian and Hollis didn’t publicize to the other 60 or so travelers that they were getting married, but upon returning to the ship, they learned that the staff had made a cake just for them. “The most beautiful thing to us was when they brought the cake out, the passengers realized it was for a wedding between two men,” Brian says. “Many of them started crying and coming over—we didn’t want the attention, but they supported us fully.”
After returning to Atlanta, the couple decided to do something completely out of character: plan a reception to celebrate their marriage with family and friends. They’re leaving most of the work to Amy Osaba Design, which will create an Antarctic look and play off the idea that Brian and Hollis have “polar” opposite personalities. As Brian puts it, “I told her what we wanted, and she figured out how to do it.” One thing’s for sure: the walls will be outfitted with framed blown-up photos from the day they said “I do.”
