Hiromi Tango’s new community-driven project promises to be no wallflower

Take life one day at a time and practise mindfulness through the beauty of flowers.

That is the message that Japanese-Australian multidisciplinary artist Hiromi Tango wants people to walk away with when admiring her artwork at the Museum of Brisbane.

Japanese-Australian artist Hiromi Tango will bring her contemporary creativity to a six-month residency at the Museum of Brisbane.

The space has been turned into a sculptural arrangement of vibrant flowers through the Hanabira (Gentle Petal) public installation for the next six months as she takes up an artist in residence place at the museum for the very first time.

Hiromi’s recognisable style has seen her works displayed in major Australian museums as well as international exhibitions in the US, Belgium, Dubai and throughout the Asia-Pacific region.

Now, she invites art lovers to take time to heal in the public space and to join her in workshops to create decorative flowers and foliage from upcycled textiles and local materials by the blooms and buds found across Meanjin/Brisbane.

In collaboration with Indigenous elder Aunty Raelene Baker and The University of Queensland Institute for Molecular Bioscience’s team, Tango said she had been examining Brisbane’s identity in response to nature, art, culture, science and health.

“Flowers are something everyone has a connection to and we wanted to generate some gentle healing and safe conversation through flowers and plants,” she said.

“We created flower [information] cards for three plants, hibiscus, wattle and tulipwood, and two [other] plants, butterfly and petunia, inspired by Professor David Craik’s lab, all of which are medicinal so they have healing agents.”

From seeing challenging times for Indigenous communities and natural disasters, the inception of her Gentle Petal artwork flourished with mental health becoming a core idea in the piece.

Her creation process involved learning of plants that were natural medicines at UQ, thoroughly researching flowers and plants.

Gentle Petal was close to Tango’s heart as she said her battle with anxiety led her to use art as a way of mindfulness.

“I used it as a therapeutic way to develop my relationship with art through mindfulness, colour and pattern making and from a neuroscience perspective, art engagement was a benefit to my mental health,” she said.

“It’s more important now than ever, particularly after COVID-19.

“For me, it’s the petal that represents gentle transformation. Petal by petal is like one step at a time or one day at a time to move towards a better relationship with yourself or nurturing a good habit like mindful walking.

“We’ve had so much pressure as a society to make decisions in such a short time so maybe instead of rushing, mindful.

“We hope people come to the workshops too to create their own petals. I just want everyone to be mindful with their daily commitments, workload and rest your heart, soul and spirit so don’t overcommit and be mindful of one’s capacity.

“Lots of young people are going through a really difficult time with challenges like societal thoughts. Gentle Petal may not be the answer but it’s a reminder to be mindful.”

Her residency ends on Sunday, August 11. The exhibition is free and opens from 10am to 5pm daily at the Museum of Brisbane (Level 3, City Hall, 64 Adelaide Street).