Sakura: A Season of Becoming A Transnational Group Exhibition Exploring the Artistic Metaphors of Cherry Blossoming

Junko Yoda, Yamazakura (Wild Cherry Blossoms), 2026, Acrylic, mulberry paper and oil stick on wood panel, 48x48 in. 121.9x121.9 cm

Sakura: A Season of Becoming

A Transnational Group Exhibition Exploring the Artistic Metaphors of Cherry Blossoming

April 4, 2026

Curated by Luisa Tuntuc | Kyoko Sato

Spring in New York is a season when the city’s streets and parks are adorned with daffodils, tulips, and, most prominently, cherry blossoms, the city’s unofficial heralds of the season. Among these, the cherry blossoms—ephemeral in their fleeting, simultaneous bloom and delicate in their swift scattering—resonate deeply with human sensibilities, captivating countless New Yorkers year after year.

Native to the Japanese archipelago, the cherry tree has been nurtured for over a millennium as a living embodiment of Japan’s spiritual and cultural identity. Its significance is profound: alongside the chrysanthemum, the cherry blossom is widely recognized as a national flower and a symbol of Japan.

During the Nara period (710–794), influenced by Tang-era Chinese culture, the plum tree was celebrated in poetry and sartorial design. However, with the emergence of a distinctly Japanese aesthetic during the Heian period (794–1185), cultural focus shifted to the cherry blossom. By the early 10th and 11th centuries, in court literature such as Kokin Wakashū (905), The Tale of Genji (early 11th century), and The Pillow Book (early 11th century), the cherry had become the nation’s emblematic flower, a symbol of aesthetic and emotional refinement. [1]

The cherry blossom later assumed a role beyond Japan’s borders, becoming the icon of international cultural exchange through what came to be known as “cherry diplomacy” in the early 20th century. In 1912, in a gesture of friendship between Japan and the United States, Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo donated approximately 3,000 cherry saplings to the banks of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., and an additional 2,500 to the Hudson River waterfront in New York City. 

Sakura: A Season of Becoming

A Transnational Group Exhibition Exploring the Artistic Metaphors of Cherry Blossoming Curated by Kyoko Sato | Luisa Tuntuc

Romanian Cultural Institute | Brâncuși Gallery

200 E 38th St, New York, NY 10016 | (212) 687-0180

April 17 – May 15, 2026 | Monday – Thursday 9AM-6PM, Closed on Sat and Sun