COLA 2025 Public Program: Flora Kao, Lotus Origami Making Class

COLA 2025 – Design and Visual Arts Exhibition: Public Program

Flora Kao, Lotus Origami Making Class

Saturday, August 23, 2025

Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery, Barnsdall Art Park

4800 Hollywood Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90027Limited free parking available on site

Join LAMAG and artist Flora Kao on Saturday, August 23 from 12 to 3 p.m. for an all ages, family-friendly origami lotus-making activity inspired by her installation Boundless in the COLA 2025 – Design and Visual Artist Exhibition. Rooted in Taiwanese Buddhist mourning traditions, this meditative art-making session invites the public to learn how to fold origami lotus—symbols of resilience, transformation, and beauty.

In Buddhist practice, the lotus flower represents purity, enlightenment, and rebirth. Golden yellow, a color often seen in temples and altars, symbolizes transcendence and awakening. Participants will explore these symbolic elements through hands-on paper folding to create delicate lotus flowers that honor both personal and collective healing.

Kao’s work draws from a ritual in which families fold and burn 108 paper lotuses each week for seven weeks following a loved one’s passing, culminating on the 49th day—a significant moment of transition in Buddhist belief. Through this quiet act of making, participants are invited to reflect, process, and connect.

No experience is necessary, and all materials will be provided.

About the Artist

Flora Kao explores the poetics of human relationship with environment, transforming everyday structures into systems of beauty. In Los Angeles, Kao has exhibited solo at Launch LA, Los Angeles Artist Association, Cerritos College, Grand Central Art Center, Pasadena Museum of California Art, Commonwealth and Council, Gallery 825, Artmerge LAB, HAUS Gallery, the LA Art Show, and the UC Irvine University Gallery. Kao’s

work has also been featured at various Southern California venues including John Wayne Airport, LAX, LA Louver, Angels Gate Art Gallery, El Segundo Museum of Art, Torrance Art Museum, Irvine Fine Arts Center, City of Brea Art Gallery, LAXART, Durden and Ray, See Line Gallery, Edward Cella Art & Architecture, Beacon Arts Building, West LA College, Cerritos College, Cypress College, California State University, and La Sierra University. Kao holds a MFA from UC Irvine in Studio Art, a BFA in Painting from Otis College of Art and Design, and a BA in Environmental Science and Public Policy from Harvard College.

Accessibility

As a covered entity under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Los Angeles does not discriminate on the basis of disability and, upon request, will provide reasonable accommodation to ensure equal access to its programs, services, and activities. To arrange accommodations, please contact bGFtYWcgfCBsYWNpdHkgISBvcmc= or call (323) 644-6269.

Image Credit: Flora Kao, Boundless (detail), Paper, string, rubber bands, and fishing line, 2025. Courtesy of the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs / Los Angeles Municipal Art Gallery. Photo: Brian Jones.

Also check out other Arts events in Los Angeles, Workshops in Los Angeles, Exhibitions in Los Angeles.