The House of Floating Flowers (Ukibana no ie)

Presented by Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts and artisan in partnership with The Japanese House Australia.⁠

The Japanese House, Ingham

Artist Mari Hirata

Medium Metal and paper

Location 5 Lynch St, Warrgamay, Nywaigi & Bandjin Country / Ingham, QLD 4850.

About the exhibition

The House of Floating Flowers (Ukibana no ie) is a site-responsive installation by Mari Hirata, developed through a recent artist residency at the Japanese House, Ingham, and presented as part of PUNQ Festival.

What might a house remember? What might it dream?

The House of Floating Flowers imagines the Japanese House as a living vessel, dreaming through nature, architecture, and memory. Hirata creates new works responding to the spirit of the site, inspired by the house's remarkable journey from Japan to Australia, its floral motifs, intricate timber craftsmanship, surrounding tropical gardens, and layered histories.

At the heart of the project is the metaphor of the floating flower: a symbol for the people, stories and cultures that pass through the house, each leaving traces before drifting onward. Like the house itself, these stories continue to evolve through movement, encounter and exchange; connecting Japan, Brisbane, and Ingham across time and distance.

Balancing history with imagination, The House of Floating Flowers invites visitors to experience the Japanese House through a new lens - where architecture, nature and memory gently intertwine, and where new stories continue to bloom.

Commissioned by Umbrella Studio Contemporary Arts and artisan in partnership with The Japanese House Australia.

About the artist

Mari Hirata is a multidisciplinary artist based in Lutruwita / Tasmania. Working across a range of mediums including photography, sculpture, installation, and silversmithing, her practice explores themes of memory, ritual, storytelling, and interpersonal narratives. Drawing together symmetry and organic forms, Hirata creates works that echo both natural and built landscapes, informed by the aesthetic sensibilities of her multicultural heritage. Unified by an interest in materiality, perception, and the quiet poetics of objects and spaces, her work considers how personal and collective histories become embedded within form, inviting moments of contemplation and connection. Hirata has exhibited extensively throughout Australia and internationally, with works held in collections including the National Gallery of Australia, and has completed residencies and commissions with leading Australian arts organisations. Her small sculptures and wearable pieces are currently stocked in museum and gallery shops around Australia.