Digging into Art in Bloom’s roots in advance of the 20th festival

From Asian art to Impressionism—and many more—the connection between flowers and art is evident in most of the Museum’s galleries. A more intentional effort to pair the two at SLAM started over two decades ago with the first Art in Bloom. 

This year marks the 20th Art in Bloom festival at the Museum. (It was not held on-site from 2009–13 due to the construction of the East Building or in 2021–22 because of the pandemic.) In the 2026 celebration, floral designers from across the region will reimagine 30 different works of art in SLAM’s collection through floral arrangements. A host of special events will accompany the festival, which runs February 27 through March 1. 

The festival’s roots date back decades. In 1976, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston held the first-known event pairing fresh flowers and art and called it “Art in Bloom.” In St. Louis, guided tours of the Museum’s collection in the 1980s were titled “Art in Bloom,” and by the early 1990s, conversations and planning were taking place to start the program at SLAM. 

The first Art in Bloom at SLAM in 2000 saw more than 7,000 visitors over the course of the two-day festival. The following year, it was expanded to three days, and attendance ballooned to more than 19,000. Since the on-site return in 2023 after two years held virtually because of the pandemic, attendance has continued to rise—with each year setting a new record. The 2025 iteration welcomed more than 30,000 people to the Museum over the weekend. 

Festival activities and programs have been added or changed over the years, but the floral interpretations have always been the heart of Art and Bloom, offering visitors a unique way to engage with the Museum’s collection. In the first festival, 18 AIFD-certified florists were invited to participate, interpreting 30 objects. By the second Art in Bloom in 2001, local garden clubs took over the honor. Now, through an open call application process, primarily professional floral designers and garden club members vie for one of the coveted spots each year. 

In addition to the arrangements, other festival fixtures since nearly the beginning include featured designers, family programs, and lectures. Here are some noteworthy highlights from Art in Bloom’s history at SLAM: The Preview Party and People’s Choice ballot started in 2003; Sculpture Hall floral installations were introduced in 2004; the 2005 festival was themed to celebrate the opening of SLAM’s new Asian art galleries; the Iron Florist competition (modeled after the popular Iron Chef TV show) started in 2015 and has been held a handful of times since; and Martha Stewart was the featured florist in 2018, though her presentation had to be rescheduled to June that year because weather conditions impacted her travel. 

For more information on the making of Art in Bloom, read this previous blog post.