At 20, he graduated from Tokyo’s Flower College, which also opened doors at Kamon Flower Gate Co Ltd; a rich and fertile working environment where his talent only sharpened. Currently, Niwa is chief designer at the respectable Floreal Opaque Marunouchi, specialising in dressing wedding ceremonies and hotels, both in Japan and abroad. The international competitions he participates in are personal tests of strength. He juggles, constructs and experiments with flowers. His brother and co-designer Sinji supports him in this constant search. As partners, they work together under the name ‘Mixture’. Hideyuki’s classic, linear style, with its precise, sparse and thoughtful placement of plants and materials – the quintessential characteristics of the Japanese concept of wabi sabi – rightfully earned him the ‘Bronze Leaf’ in the 2010/2011 edition and the ‘Golden Leaf’ in the 2012/2013 edition of Stichting Kunstboek’s prestigious International Floral Art.
Inked & Blossom
€29.90French floral artist Sarah Willemart grew up surrounded by flowers and developed a great interest in floral design from an early age. The art of tattooing in its most diverse forms is a more recent passion.