A Season of Becoming — Opening Moments & Exhibition Highlights

Eva Petrič
4 days ago
2 min read

Thank you to all who joined me at the opening of Sakura: A Season of Becoming, curated by Kyoko Sato and Luisa Tuntuc, Brancusi Gallery at the Romanian Cultural Institute New York. I’m happy to share moments from the opening and highlights of the exhibition, which will remain on view until May 15 at 200 E 38th St., New York.

Dorian Branea, Director of the Romanian Cultural Institute New York, curators Kyoko Sato and Luisa Tuntuc.

Step into Sakura: A Season of Becoming — a group exhibition curated by Kyoko Sato and Luisa Tuntuc, reimagining the symbolism of cherry blossoms through a contemporary, transnational lens.

Inspired by the Japanese tradition of sakura, the exhibition unfolds around themes of impermanence, renewal, and transformation, inviting reflection across cultures, disciplines, and lived experiences.

Featuring eleven artists from across the globe:

Daniel Fishkin (USA), Eva Petrič (Slovenia), Georgette Sinclair (Romania/USA), Junko Yoda (Japan/USA), Kiichiro Adachi (Japan/USA), Maia Ștefana Oprea (Romania), Mariko Fujimoto (Japan), Nicole Cohen (USA), Paul O’Malley (Ireland),Sophia Chizuko (Japan), Sorin Scurtulescu (Romania)., working across painting, installation, sound, video, textile, and photography, the exhibition creates a vibrant dialogue between artistic approaches and cultural perspectives.

A shared space of becoming

Envisioned as an intercultural dialogue between Romania, Japan, and New York, the exhibition transforms sakura into more than a symbol of nature — it becomes a reflection of connection, memory, and collective transformation.

My works in the exhibition:

“Blooming Thorns”

A reflection on the importance of continuing to dream — and a reminder that the air we breathe belongs to all of us.

As curator Kyoko Sato writes:

Floral motifs—cherry blossoms alongside roses and other flowers—are intricately woven into antique lace, where each pattern becomes a metaphor for a nation, interconnected into a shared whole.

Spring- series Four Phases of the Climate Girl:

“Four Phases of the Climate Girl” is a series of four works — Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring — questioning the shifting presence of seasons in our contemporary world, and what this means both symbolically and environmentally.