Japanese artist Makoto Azuma is the mind behind AMKK, a Tokyo-based floral art collective that's gained global renown for their experimental work with botany.
Azuma Makoto
Azuma once launched a 50-year-old bonsai tree into space and a sunk a bouquet of vivid flowers into the abyss of the ocean.
Azuma Makoto
His floral palette includes Persian buttercup, hydrangea, cat's tail lily, dahlia, Chinese peony, witchgrass and the flamingo flower. Even the blue throatwart and crucifix orchid make a cameo.
Azuma Makoto
In his 2018 book, "Flora Magnifica: The Art of Flowers in Four Seasons," he wrote, "When I create a piece, I like to include the roots and bulbs, stems and dead flowers that are not usually used in arrangements. My goal is to work with every aspect of a plant, every moment, in order to discover the beauty of life."
Azuma Makoto
Azuma says he places his work in incongruous contexts in order "to pursue a new kind of beauty."
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
Through the images of AMKK's co-founder and photographer, Shiinoki Shunsuke, the collective has found a way to grant the flowers a form of everlasting life.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
The team has captured scuptures in extreme conditions.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
The collaboration between Azuma and Shunsuke has yielded striking images of frozen bouquets laden with icicles in Hokkaido, as well as time-lapse videos of flowers wilting.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
AMKK sells bespoke bouquets for personal use and craft installations for international and Japanese clients.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
"Flowers make you think about time," Azuma says. "They are living things, destined to one day decay, then disappear. Both the people who work with flowers and those who receive them can't help but be aware of this fact."
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
Azuma says his pieces may be seen as an exploration of the relationship between humans and flowers, but also between nature and Japan.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
Azuma began to experiment with burning flowers for art following a death in his family, something he described as "a difficult work."
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
"I have been interested in what kind of expression flowers show when they burn down to nothing for a long time," says Azuma. "I prepared flowers that were about to wither, because they won't burn otherwise, but they still look beautiful at that stage."
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
"At my core, I'm a florist," he says. "I just want to work with and be surrounded by flowers every day. That, for me, is the best relationship."
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
"We understand how important it is to approach flowers with humility, because the act of killing flowers is so selfish," says Azuma.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
"I use flowers that are living. If I use their life to create a piece, I would like to create a work that should surprise the flower themselves, or the people who see them. I am an entertainer who uses flowers," says Azuma of his art.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
Azuma has an underground florist shop in Tokyo, called "Jardins des Fleurs", that he says is "like a wine cellar." The temperature, light and humidity are all carefully controlled to ensure the flowers are shown at their best.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
"I think my mission as flower artist is to create something new out of flowers by adding our artificial inputs, or to give flowers new life in a totally new situation. I believe that's what my work is about and that's what I must do," explains Azuma.
Courtesy Azuma Makoto
"Expression using plants is not something that is expected to last long. It is the art of something that withers and disappears at the end...and that is ephemeral beauty that the art of flower and plants express," says Azuma. "Having said that, we have the technology now to photograph it, film it or fixate it in acrylic cube."
KRISTOF VRANCKEN/Courtesy Azuma Makoto
Makoto Azuma fuses nature and technology to create "living art"
