Flowers and art–two of my favorite things! Of course I needed to go to see the Art in Bloom exhibit on Saturday at the Everhart Museum in Scranton, PA. Even better, my best friend Jenny was set to visit me that day as well, and this was something she would enjoy just as much as I! 
For Art in Bloom events, which occur in museums across the country, local floral designers create interpretations of paintings in flowers. The picture above shows an arrangement mimicking the painting Starry Night. (There is a list of artists and arrangers at the end of this post.)
The Great Wave of Kanagawa featured vibrant blue roses:
Here’s some Hot Stuff:
The negative space in the center of this arrangement mimics the sideways white U in Our House Now: 
Jenny and I both admired the use of many natural elements (feathers, fungi, and bark) in Best in Show winner Along the Hudson:
Our favorite was Femme Etende Sous un Arbre. It was named Best Traditional Design, and both of us put our People’s Choice Award ticket in the jar for this one! 
It was a great day to be at the museum. In addition to the floral arrangements, several organizations had tables set up with information and activities for children and adults alike. The Penn State Master Gardeners offered good advice along with free herb plants and organic vegetable seeds. A man from Zen Chaser Bonsai showed us how to train and trim bonsai trees. The Laurel Garden Club helped each of us create a tiny fairy garden with a succulent centerpiece: 
Though these are not my own flowers or arrangements, I am linking this post to the In a Vase on Monday weekly meme hosted by Cathy of Rambling in the Garden, in hopes that her regular readers will find this as interesting as my friend and I did! Here in NE Pennsylvania, I finally have some blooms, so perhaps I’ll make my own artistic arrangement next week!
* Here is a list of the artists and floral designers for each painting:
Starry Night: painter Hunt Slonem; floral by Dorian Butovich of Central Park Flowers
The Great Wave of Kanagawa: painter Katsushika Hokusai; floral by Monica Labor of Monzies Florist in Tunkhannock, PA
Hot Stuff: painter Hope Horn; floral by Bern Giovannucci of B’s Florist
Our House Now: painter Phillip Sherrod; floral by Mattern’s Floral of Kingston, PA
Along the Hudson: painter Frederic Knight; floral by designer Susan French
Femme Etende Sous un Arbre: painter Chaim Soutine; floral by Valerie Smith of Snapdragon Flower Company
