This lot was donated by Escher GuneWardena Architecture with proceeds benefitting Hollyhock House.
The photograph by Hiroshi Clark, Massed Expression, features an ikebana arrangement by Ravi GuneWardena. Making reference to historic images of flower arrangements found in various houses by Frank Lloyd Wright, architect and ikebana artist GuneWardena was invited to insert a series of ikebana arrangements in the Hollyhock House in fall 2023. Designed and built in the early 1920s, simultaneously to Wright’s Imperial Hotel in Tokyo, the Hollyhock clearly shows Japanese influences and contains spaces ideal for the display of ikebana. "Massed Expression” is one of several typical ikebana arrangements of the Sogetsu School. Artist Hiroshi Clark, whose own work often examines the intersection of Japanese and American culture, was invited to photograph the completed ikebana works.
Architect Ravi GuneWardena, FAIA has been in partnership with Frank Escher at Escher GuneWardena Architecture since 1997. The firm is known internationally for their residential, commercial and institutional work, including the design of spaces for art and collaborations with artists, as well as for their numerous historic preservation projects of works by architects Schindler, Neutra, Lautner, Eames, Williams and others. Ravi is a practitioner and teacher in the Sogetsu School of Ikebana founded in Tokyo in 1927.
Curated by Dung Ngo, design expert and Editor in Chief of AUGUST, this selection of works will benefit Frank Lloyd Wright’s historic Hollyhock House. Focused on architecture and architectural design, the remarkable range of furnishings, artwork, and objects reflect the vibrant design landscape of Southern California and includes contributions from influential figures and firms including Johnston Marklee, Kulapat Yantrasast, Christopher Norman, Ali Tayar, Edwin Chan, Design, Bitches, West of West, Hiroshi Clark, and more.
Hollyhock House, photographed by Stan Ecklund. Image courtesy of City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.
Located in Barnsdall Art Park in Hollywood, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Hollyhock House is the only UNESCO World Heritage site in Los Angeles. Representative of Wright's masterful integration of architecture and nature, the architectural treasure is stewarded by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs to provide a timeless cultural space for both the local community and visitors worldwide and proceeds from this sale will support its contemporary exhibitions program.
Hollyhock House, photographed by Joshua White. Image courtesy of City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.
American Design
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