Special to the Times
The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA), celebrates the return of spring with a virtual edition of its 45th annual Art in Bloom (Friday, April 30–Monday, May 3), a festival that pairs art with floral interpretations created by 27 New England-area garden clubs, including the Beacon Hill Garden Club.
This year’s festival is themed around artworks that tell the stories of women across the Museum’s collection—from images of mothers and motherhood throughout the ages to works by great women artists such as Mary Cassatt and Helen Frankenthaler. In addition to a selection of recorded guided tours available to watch on mfa.org and live-streamed private interactive tours conducted via Zoom, program highlights include free instructional videos from local floral and event designer Jimmy Guzman on mastering arrangements at home. The festival, hosted at the Museum for more than 40 years, is presented by the MFA Associates, a group of dedicated volunteers who lead gallery tours and create flower arrangements throughout the year.
Art in Bloom is sponsored by the Arbella Insurance Foundation. Additional support from Wilmington Trust, part of the M&T Bank Family, and Fitch Law Partners.
Led by a team of MFA Associate art and floral guides, three recorded guided tours invite online visitors to experience Art in Bloom on their own schedule during the festival weekend. Free for members—and available for purchase individually for nonmembers at $10 each—these 45-minute videos feature nine works from the MFA’s collection alongside the floral arrangements inspired by the art.
The tours are offered in three themes: Mothers, Women Artists and Women through Time: Grace and Power. Tickets will be released on April 15 at 10 am and tours will be available to view on mfa.org from Friday, April 30 through Monday, May 3.
Live-streamed private interactive tours conducted via Zoom—accommodating up to 97 participants and offered in the same selection of themes—will provide Art in Bloom supporters the chance to convene a group to enjoy a one-hour presentation with MFA Associate art and floral guides. Private interactive tours are priced at $400 and tickets are currently available on mfa.org.