Artist Shogo Kariyazaki brings flower power to Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens

The historical buildings of Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens, in Tokyo’s Taito ward, opened their doors Friday to an exhibition of flower arrangements from celebrated artist and personality Shogo Kariyazaki.

The exhibition, “Experience ‘beauty’ at Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens,” showcases a coming together of architecture and Kariyazaki’s flower arrangements, housed in the former residential buildings of the over 120-year-old property managed by the Tokyo Metropolitan Park Association.

With large-scale arrangements installed throughout Kyu-Iwasaki’s grand two-floor Western-style residence - designated a national cultural asset - as well as the Japanese-style residence and billiard room, the project represents one of the most important in Kariyazaki’s 40 years of flower arranging. 

(Experience ‘beauty’ at Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens, Tokyo.  Photo taken Nov. 10, 2022.)

“It’s been my life's work to work with historical buildings,” 63-year-old Kariyazaki told members of the media on Thursday ahead of the exhibition opening. 

“It was a great honor to be allowed to work with a national treasure and an important cultural property. It was also a great artistic challenge.”

“We have arranged flowers to revive the spaces here while considering the political, economic, and historical significance of the property,” he said.

(Shogo Kariyazaki, Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens in Tokyo.  Photo taken Nov. 10, 2022.)

Kariyazaki, however, is no stranger in lending his talents to grand settings - his flower arrangements have graced high-profile occasions such as during the visit to Japan of former U.S. President Bill Clinton and the 10-year anniversary of the accession to the throne of Japan’s former emperor.

For his latest project, Kariyazaki explained how he has drawn on his decades of experience in flower arranging, mixing traditional and innovative elements to showcase the artist that he is today.

“You will see arrangements that might look typical of Kariyazaki as well as those that show how my work has evolved,” he said. 

“For me, Japan’s traditional ikebana flower arranging isn’t something that belongs in the past. I make arrangements which reflect the present and look toward the future.”

(Experience ‘beauty’ at Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens, Tokyo. Photo taken Nov. 10, 2022.)

The exhibition, “Experience ‘beauty’ at Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Garden,” runs from Nov. 11 to Dec. 4, 2022.

In addition to works by Kariyazaki himself, the exhibition period will also feature arrangements by students of the artist's Kariyazaki Flower School. Talk shows and concerts are scheduled on select days.

Kyu-Iwasaki-tei once served as one of the residences of the Iwasaki family who founded the Mitsubishi Financial Group. After World War II the grounds and its buildings were taken over by the Japanese government. Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Garden was opened to the public in 2001 under the management of the City of Tokyo.  

(Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens in Tokyo's Taito ward.  Photo taken Nov. 10, 2022.)