North Carolina Museum of Art - Art in Bloom 2025: A Tribute to Modernism Through Flowers and Color

This year, I had the honor and immense joy of participating in North Carolina Museum of Art’s 2025 Art in Bloom, one of the most inspiring celebrations of art and floral design in our region. Each year, floral designers from across the state are invited to interpret a work of art from the museum’s permanent collection—and this year, I was selected to bring to life a modern piece that instantly stirred something deep within me: The Wind Stood Still by Irene Rice Pereira.

A Visionary Artist Who Broke Boundaries

Irene Rice Pereira (1902–1971) was a groundbreaking modernist whose work was far ahead of her time. A pioneer in both abstract painting and the integration of art, science, and metaphysics, Pereira was known for her layered glass pieces and geometric compositions that reflected light, transparency, and space. She was not only one of the few prominent female artists of her era in the male-dominated world of modernism, but she also co-founded the Design Laboratory in New York—a progressive art and design school inspired by the Bauhaus movement.

Her work often explored the relationship between inner consciousness and external reality—concepts that resonate deeply with me as a floral designer. Like Pereira, I see art as a language that transcends form. Her piece The Wind Stood Stillspeaks of stillness, energy, and elegance all at once—qualities I sought to honor and reinterpret through the ephemeral beauty of flowers.

Inspired by Pereira’s Modern Mastery

Inspired by Irene Rice Pereira’s The Wind Stood Still, my floral interpretation captures the tension between movement and stillness, light and form. Pereira’s layered geometric abstraction evokes an ethereal energy—like wind momentarily paused in motion. I mirrored this interplay through an arrangement that balances structured lines with fluid, organic elements, using airy textures and a restrained yet dynamic color palette to reflect the painting’s depth and luminosity. My design seeks to suspend a moment in time, inviting viewers to experience the quiet power within stillness.

Interpreting Modernism Through Flowers

When I first laid eyes on The Wind Stood Still, I was struck by its bold geometry and mesmerizing layers. There’s a quiet strength in its stillness, yet a sense of movement in how it interacts with space. My goal as a floral artist was to create something equally captivating and inviting—an installation that both complimented Pereira’s vision and offered viewers a new, sensorial experience of her work.

I chose an all-blue palette to echo the emotional tone and depth of Pereira’s composition. Blue is a color that evokes serenity, trust, and contemplation—yet in the right context, it can be striking, modern, and bold. Through carefully chosen florals with structural lines and unexpected textures, I crafted a design that aimed to mirror the artwork’s geometry while softening it with organic elegance. My hope was to create a moment where modern art and floral sculpture could meet—where petals and paint could whisper the same story.

The Joy of Creating Modern Floral Art

Modern floral design gives me space to break the rules and reimagine the unexpected. It allows for negative space, clean lines, contrast, and emotion—all working together to create a cohesive experience. Participating in Art in Bloom this year reminded me of the joy in that freedom. It challenged me to not only design from a place of aesthetic beauty but to design from a place of interpretation, emotion, and storytelling.

Bringing The Wind Stood Still to life through florals was more than an assignment—it was a journey. One that connected me with an incredible legacy, tested my creative edges, and reminded me why I fell in love with the art of flowers in the first place.

Thank You

To the North Carolina Museum of Art and the incredible team behind Art in Bloom—thank you for this opportunity to be part of something so meaningful. To Irene Rice Pereira—thank you for your vision, your courage, and your place in history. And to all who came to experience this blend of art and nature, I hope you walked away feeling inspired, moved, and perhaps even a little bit still.

Until next time,
— Adama
Founder & Creative Director, Lavish Leaf