Brooklyn Botanic Garden has announced that it will be hosting a new exhibition called "Jean-Michel Othoniel: The Flowers of Hypnosis," from July 18-Oct. 22, 2023.
As part of the exhibition, six large sculptures — created by French artist, Jean-Michel Othoniel — will be installed throughout BBG's three most-renowned gardens: the Japanese Hill-and-Pond Garden, the Fragrance Garden and the Lily Pool Terrace.
All of the works on display depict a specific flower, including three Gold Lotus sculptures (based on the lotus flower, made out of stainless steel and gold leaf), a Gold Rose sculpture (based on roses, made from gold pearls and steel), along with two Mirror Lotus sculptures (inspired by the lotus flower, made out of mirror beads).
According to a release, Othoniel’s new art pieces for the Garden are "born of the artist’s passion for and observations of nature and flowers."
“Gardens leave a great deal of space for the irrational, the inexplicable, the extravagant; they are places of mystery, magic, and secrecy," said Othoniel. "The large sculptures in gold and mirrors installed on the water are there to hypnotize us, to make us forget the world’s harshness, and to lift us out of the disillusionment of modernity and boredom."
Born in 1964 in Saint-Etienne, France, Othoniel has had major exhibitions held all over the world throughout his long llustrious career. More recently, the French artist has exhibited at Petit Palais in Paris in 2021 and at the Seoul Museum of Art in 2022.
The upcoming BBG exhibition will be the artist's largest in the United States since his retrospective at the Brooklyn Museum back in 2012.
“Jean-Michel has a passion for gardens, flowers, and the natural world that reveals itself in his works for The Flowers of Hypnosis, which respond to and enhance their garden settings," said Adrian Benepe, president of BBG. "This exhibition offers unexpected sights and encounters around BBG, making a visit to the Garden even more enchanting."
"Jean-Michel Othoniel: The Flowers of Hypnosis" is free with a Brooklyn Botanic Garden admission. For more information, visit bbg.org/othoniel.
