Floral artist Sara Malik’s journey into the world of art began as a child. She recalls learning to appreciate nature with her grandmother who was a painter and a floral artist herself.
“Every summer, we would go for holidays in the beautiful Himalaya mountains of Pakistan, and my fondest memories are picking delicate daisies and other blooms from our walks in the mountains and creating posies and wreaths with my grandmother and mother, also an artist and wedding planner,” she says.
Floral art involves using flowers and plant materials to create designs that are more than just a bouquet or a centre-piece, she says. “I view each design as a work of art, where blooms and foliage come together in perfect balance and harmony.” Her husband’s work has given the family the opportunity to live in several countries where Sara has discovered and worked with new varieties of flowers and foliage.
In Jakarta she has enjoyed heliconias and orchids in her garden. Giving classes on her art, those titled “Fantastic Foliage” and “Tropical Treats” have been immensely popular, she notes. “When choosing flowers, I go with what inspires me,” she says.
Over the course of her three years in the capital, Sara offered a range of classes to help share her passion for flowers and to “instill in participants a love for nature and its bounty. The most important element of my classes is to teach participants how to maximize the beauty of each bloom, the elegance of each leaf, the curve of each tendril such that the end product is a celebration of nature in itself. When inspiration strikes, nothing is more rewarding than having my florist scissor, a bunch of blooms and a vase at hand!”
One of the most rewarding classes, she notes, was for Yayasan Wisma Cheshire, a home for the disabled where the residents created beautiful home decor products. As she prepares to depart Indonesia, she is satisfied knowing that she has empowered people –including the staff who worked for her at home– with new skills and inspired some to even start their own business.
Soon there will be a new neighbourhood to discover and new varieties of foliage to work with.
For more examples of Sara’s work visit her Instagram account @saraamalik31
