Museum of Art and Photography sends hope and love with virtual bouquet

Photo courtesy of MAP

For his parents 25th wedding anniversary in 1989, MAP Founder Abhishek Poddar surprised them with an art installation of 25 flowers. Well-known artists from India created a single flower, one for each year of his parents' married life together, in the artist's own inimitable style. Each image reminds them of a fond moment, "at times like these, we hold on to precious memories - of family times, of challenges we managed to overcome, of personal journeys we ventured on" said Abhishek.

With help from India's Museum of Art and Photography (MAP) and their Bouquet of Hope, readers can now send loved ones a free virtual bouquet of flowers. Flowers have always been the perfect Mother's Day gift because they symbolize life, love, and hope.

Over a thousand blooms have been submitted from around the world -- including from Michele Oka Doner, Ralph Gibson, Jay Levenson (MoMA), Zandra Rhodes, Fern Mallis, Daisy Soros, Colin B. Bailey (Morgan Library & Museum) -- to MAP's Bouquet of Hope. Some were drawn or painted, others photographed their garden or a motif from fabric. MAP is creating the world's largest flower bouquet to inspire hope; something we all need now more than ever.

The Museum of Art & Photography (MAP) is a new museum being built in Bangalore, the Silicon Valley of India.  It will be among India’s very first major private art museums, with a goal to share India's artistic heritage while also igniting a new modern museum culture. MAP connects India's past, present, and future by showcasing historical artifacts alongside modern and contemporary works, folk art, textiles, painting, sculpture and photography. The MAP collection currently has more than 18,000 works ranging from the 12th Century to the present day. The first 7000 objects and the first six million dollars were donated by Abhishek Poddar.