The exhibition "LIGHT OF FLOWERS," held at Shimogamo Shrine in Kyoto in the fall of 2022 following the one held in Tokyo in spring of 2021, was based on the theme of the water cycle and the changing seasons, expressing the beauty of fallen leaves just before they return to the soil and the dynamism of the ground where life slumbers, coming spring.
This exhibition showcased pieces from the Van Cleef & Arpels patrimonial collection alongside floral arrangements by Atsunobu Katagiri. The event was noteworthy for showcasing not only cut flowers, but also plants that had taken root. Mr. Katagiri removed the latter upon completion of the exhibition, for transplantation on his own property, where he has since been nurturing their growth. This attempt to reinvent the underlying concept of ikebana, as something short lived that will eventually die, is also a discovery made possible as a result of the collaboration between different materials.
Nature has offered a rich and much cherished source of inspiration for Van Cleef & Arpels since its beginnings. Each creation is infused with a taste for constant vitality, whether the metamorphosis of the seasons, the poetry of a flower in bloom or the ethereal flutter of a butterfly’s wings, preserving for all eternity that moment when life truly radiates.
At Van Cleef & Arpels, reproducing the radiance of flowers in the form of jewelry has become an artform in itself, sublimating their beauty as something eternal. Flowers continue to underpin the craftsmanship of the Maison as a motif that showcases its unique style, characterized by its subtlety of expression.
In “Rose de Noël” (1971), crafted with a mother-of-pearl corolla around a core of gold and diamonds, the delicately cut petals give off a rippling effect when viewed from the side, while the soft, shiny luster of the surface appears smooth and soft to the touch.
In Japanese culture, daily life and nature coexist in harmony. Ikebana, which expresses the change of seasons with living flowers, has become popular as a traditional practice that presents this distinctively Japanese sensibility. Mr. Katagiri, heir to this tradition, finds and expresses the beauty of nature enriching everyday life in small wildflowers that bloom along the roadside.
Both Mr. Katagiri and Van Cleef & Arpels share a particular love for small flowers, such as violets, cosmos and daisies. Their respective creations, which extol the beauty of flowers that bloom in the most unlikely of places, resonate with each other in this collaboration.
Flowers bloom only briefly and will eventually fall to the earth. And yet only with the end of one cycle of life can the next be born. In the words of Atsunobu Katagiri, “Life continues, constantly transforming, and the ongoing nature of that cycle is one of the reasons why we want to capture the beauty of flowers.”
The fragility of Ikebana, which withers away in a few days once cut and arranged, contrasts with jewelry, destined to retain its shape and luster for generations, and created using stones crystallized over millennia. Although grounded in different forms of expression, they both share the same process of conveying the essence of nature’s beauty through careful respect for the subject and the time and effort lavished upon them. Van Cleef & Arpels and Mr. Katagiri both identify with the resilience they see in the pure and humble flower, and the life that spreads from plant to mineral and all things. The beauty and grandeur of nature expressed through their collaboration will surely continue to strike a chord in their hearts.
The head of the Kado Misasagi school. Born in Osaka in 1973.
He has been searching and experimenting for a method of expression using the technique of ikebana, with folklore as a clue, in order to embody the admiration and reverence for plants and nature that human beings have primitively. He handles everything from space set-ups to photography, while he continues to be energetically active mainly in solo exhibitions.
Publications include the photo book “Sacrifice – Dedicated to the Future, Ikebana for Rebirth” (Seigensha 2015). Recent exhibitions include “LIGHT OF FLOWERS Hana no Hikari” (Daikanyama T-SITE GARDEN GALLERY 2021), in collaboration with Van Cleef & Arpels, and international photo exhibition “KYOTOGRAPHIE” (Nijo Castle 2021).
*This exhibition was held at the Daikanyama T-SITE GARDEN GALLERY from 22 April to 9 May, 2021 and at the Shimogamo Shrine in Kyoto from 3 November to 12 December, 2022.
Luck is in sight
