flowers

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Art

Delicate Accumulations of Colorful Spring Flowers Installed in a Historic French Home

During a residency this spring at La Maison Verte, a house affiliated with Jardin Botanique in Marnay-sur-Seine, France, artist Jenine Shereos (previously) created a series of ephemeral installations using local flowers. Inspired by her long daily walks in the village and gardens, the Boston-based artist tells Colossal, “I was keenly aware of the continual shift of the different blooms of flowers all around me. In the beautiful old house where I stayed, there was a small room adjacent to my bedroom that felt like a kind of liminal in-between space, or a dream space. I started to envision the different ways these flowers could transform the room.”

Shereos normally creates time-intensive work, and she describes the fleeting nature of these installations as a refreshing departure: “From the time I picked the flowers, I had only a few hours to install and photograph the work before the flowers would begin to fade… There was something magical about the continual transformation of the space. I left each installation up for one or two days, and would observe and photograph the way that the flowers wilted.”

The artist will be releasing a book in 2019 based on this installation. You can see more of her work on Instagram and Facebook.

Art

Yayoi Kusama’s ‘Flower Obsession’ Invites Guests to Cover a Domestic Interior With Faux Blossoms

Famed Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama (previously) is known for her color explosions, light matrices, and proclivity towards covering many of her works in a dazzling layer of dots. In one of her most interactive installations, the artist hands her interest in dot making over to the visitor. The Obliteration Room invites guests to “obliterate” a domestic interior by placing colorful stickers onto the walls, furniture, and floors.

For her recent commission for the inaugural National Gallery of Victoria Triennial, the artist transformed this concept to include a flower motif. For Flower Obsession (2017) guests were given artificial gerbera daisies and flower stickers to place on any surface of their choosing, completely covering the faux-apartment by the end of the triennial’s four-month run. This floral theme taps into the beginning of the artist’s art-making, referencing a memory from her early childhood.

“One day, after gazing at a pattern of red flowers on the tablecloth, I looked up to see that the ceiling, the windows, and the columns seemed to be plastered with the same red floral pattern,” Kusama explains in a press release for the triennial. “I saw the entire room, my entire body, and the entire universe covered with red flowers, and in that instant my soul was obliterated … This was not an illusion but reality itself.”

The NGV Triennial closed late last week. You can view more documentation from the inaugural exhibition, including this massive installation of hyperrealistic human skulls by Ron Mueck, on the National Gallery of Victoria’s website.

 

Art Illustration

Mysterious Anthropomorphic Illustrations of Dogs, Foxes, and Deer by Jenna Barton

American designer and illustrator Jenna Barton combines watercolor and digital processing to create mysterious anthropomorphic scenes of dogs, foxes, deer, and other four-legged beings. These eerily rendered creatures often have blank glowing eyes which suggest the animal is possessed or hiding a deep inner world.

Barton is based in Utah, which translates into her work through broad sweeping pastures and farmland illuminated by twilight. These settings add to the heightened tension presented in the animals’ demeanor, while providing a fitting background for her editorial illustrations, album art, game artwork and custom tattoos. You can buy select prints through her online store, and view more of her animal-based illustrations on Instagram and Tumblr.

Art

‘Future Flowers’ Blossom in a Digital Collaboration Presented at Japan’s Dazaifu Tenmangu Shrine

For the Hanami 2050 exhibition in Fukuoka, Japan, Danish floral designer Nicolai Bergmann collaborated with the Tokyo-based design firm Onesal to create a series of dazzling botanical animations. The works were created under the concept of “future flowers,” and explore creations from deep within the designers’ imaginations. Fantastical and brightly colored buds burst into bloom with a satisfying crack and sizzle, presenting arrangements that appear like a cross between a botanical garden and extraterrestrial forest.

The looping presentations were displayed on screens embedded in real foliage arranged by Bergmann, and sprung to life at the historic Shinto shrine Dazaifu Tenmangu (太宰府天満宮) from March 29 to April 1, 2018. You can see a video, and several clips, from the recent installation below.

 

Design

Handcrafted Hair Ornaments with Ornate Botanical Designs by Sakae

Japanese artist Sakae (previously) continues to create elaborate botanically-inspired hair combs using liquid resin and wire. The hair combs, or kanzashi, have a long history of use in Japanese hairstyles, and today they are often reserved for special occasions such as weddings and tea ceremonies. Sakae captures a wide range of colors and textures in her hairpieces, from the rippling edges of carnation petals to the geometric clusters of hydrangea blossoms. Sakae’s hairpieces are sold via auction, which she announces on her website and Facebook page. She also shares her work on Pinterest.

Art Photography

An Experimental Short Film Captures the Dramatic Dance of the Seasons

French film director Thomas Blanchard (previously) is known for his video work with oils and inks. In his most recent video, DANCE DANCE, Blanchard uses flowers as the contextual framework for his signature coils and swirls of color. Flowers have long been used as symbols of vitality and mortality, and the fire and ice these blooms are subjected to suggests a literal interpretation of those concepts. In the dramatically scored video, flowers and foliage light on fire, freeze and melt in icy pools, and are consumed by billowing clouds of colorful smoke. You can see more of Blanchard’s work on Vimeo, Behance, and Facebook. (via We and the Color)

Illustration Photography

New Flower Arrangements Formed Into Exotic Butterflies and Moths by Raku Inoue

Montreal-based fashion designer and creative Raku Inoue (previously) continues his Natura Insects series with a focus on brilliantly colored moths and butterflies. The delicate insects were created from seasonal leaves and blooms, with pastel petals and green leaves composing those made in late summer, and warmer tones and brown leaves forming the works made in mid-fall.

The artist learned the importance of utilizing seasonal materials while studying the art of Ikebana—the Japanese art of floral arrangement. This training taught Inoue to respect the nature he works with and only use what is most abundant, rather than focusing on what might look most attractive. Often after a rain he will collect the petals that have fallen to the ground, using these naturally-provided elements rather than searching for flowers still connected to their tree or stem.

You can see more arrangements from his continuing series on Instagram.