ASLA Honor Award for SAKURA ORIHON

SAKURA ORIHON has received the Honor Award for Communication from the American Society of Landscape Architects.

A gorgeous collection of extended horizontal drawings that document the movement, experiential sequences, conversations, cultural significance, and seasonality of Sakura (cherry blossom). The richness of the subject matter is surpassed only by the elegance, artistry, and craft of the orihon sketchbooks themselves and the drawings within. The exhibition leaves no detail overlooked, presenting an exquisite arrangement of information, craft, culture, and history. It offers a beautiful visual journey on the poetry of landscapes, embodying cultural perspectives and exchanges. 2023 ASLA Awards Jury Statement

Fifteen orihon (ori=folding, hon=book) sketchbooks from Ron Henderson’s Japan-US Friendship Commission Fellowship in Japan are the subject of recurring solo exhibitions, Sakura Orihon, at the US National Arboretum each spring from 2018 to the current Spring 2023 (with hiatus from global pandemic). Following the cherry blossoms from south to north, the landscape architect recorded pilgrimages to famous venerable trees and documented horticultural practices (branch crutching, rope tenting, etc.) that embody cherry blossom culture in Japan. Kathleen Emerson-Dell, the exhibition’s curator, says the "themes resonate with the U.S. National Arboretum audience and advance the Arboretum’s mission to preserve plants from around the world."

https://www.asla.org/2023awards/7492.html