The Rose Garden Conference

The FLAG Art Foundation is a nonprofit exhibition space that encourages the appreciation of contemporary art among diverse audiences. Founded in 2008 by art patron and philanthropist Glenn Fuhrman, FLAG presents rotating exhibitions that include artworks borrowed from a variety of sources. FLAG invites a broad range of creative individuals to curate thematic group shows and works in-depth with artists to provide curatorial support and a platform to realize solo exhibitions.

The FLAG Art Foundation

FLAG and Madison Square Park Conservancy are pleased to present The Rose Garden Conference, a project by Australian artist Gabriella Hirst.

Sol LeWitt Lawn | Madison Square Park

The FLAG Art Foundation and Madison Square Park Conservancy are pleased to present The Rose Garden Conference, a project by Australian artist Gabriella Hirst that comprises an interactive workshop exploring the influence of the Rosa floribunda ‘Atombombe,’ a cultivar developed by German rose breeder Reimer Kordes (1922-1997) in 1953. Participants of The Rose Garden Conference will be led through a grafting session of young roses and will have the opportunity to continue to cultivate and adopt their own rose plants.In 2015, Gabriella Hirst and Warren Harper collaborated on an interactive and ongoing project titled How to Make a Bomb—included in The FLAG Art Foundation’s current group exhibition <a href="https://www.flagartfoundation.org/exhibitions/aroseis" title="https://www.flagartfoundation.org/exhibitions/aroseis" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">A Rose Is</a>—with the aim to propagate new specimens of the Rosa floribunda ‘Atombombe from the few remaining, original plants,’ as well as teach others how to do the same through instructional workshops and printed manuals.How to Make a Bomb workshops bring together practical rose gardening advice with the real-world histories the United Kingdom’s nuclear armament proliferations, European nuclear weapons testings on Indigenous Lands in the 1950s, and the broader British colonial project of ‘Gardening the world.’ Workshop participants are encouraged to surreptitiously plant their roses in public spaces to highlight the structural connections amongst horticulture, state power, colonialism, and nuclear proliferation. There are currently an unknown number of Rosa floribunda ‘Atombombe,’ roses growing in British soils.About: Gabriella Hirst is an artist living and working in Australia, Germany, and the UK. Hirst studied at the College of Fine Arts and the National Art School, Australia, between 2008-2012, and received an MFA at the Slade School, London, UK, in 2018, as recipient of the John Crampton Scholarship. From 2020-23, she was an Associate Lecturer at the RCA London School of Architecture leading the section ‘Practices of Care and Control.’ Hirst is the recipient of the 2020 ACMI/Ian Potter Moving Image Commission, the Marten Bequest Scholarship, and the Sidney Power Institute Prize. Her recent projects have been exhibited and commissioned by The Sainsbury Center, Norwich, UK; Kunsthalle Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany; the Fiorucci Foundation, London, UK; The FLAG Art Foundation, New York, NY; Focal Point Gallery, Essex, UK; The Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia; UQ Art Museum, St Lucia, Australia; and the Australian Center for the Moving Image, Melbourne, Australia. Recent residencies include the Villa Romana Testing Grounds Residency (Italy, 2024), and the Delfina Art Foundation (UK, 2025). She is part of the collective Atomic Terrain, who have performed and presented in CARA (NYC), the Wende Museum (LA) and within the special project program of Printed Matter Art Book Fair NYC (2024).<a href="https://madisonsquarepark.org" title="https://madisonsquarepark.org" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Madison Square Park Conservancy</a> is the nonprofit entrusted by the City of New York to operate Madison Square Park, a 6.2-acre public space in the heart of Manhattan. Our mission is to conserve, maintain, and program this ever-evolving historic green space, including raising 100% of the park’s operating budget. Our dedicated team takes great pride in caring for and shaping an urban oasis for all to enjoy.The FLAG Art Foundation is a non-collecting, nonprofit exhibition space that mounts solo, two-person, and thematic group exhibitions centering on emerging and established artists from around the globe. Organized by a diverse community of curators and thinkers within and beyond the art world, FLAG opened to the public in 2008 and has staged over 100 exhibitions celebrating the work of nearly 1,000 artists. Committed to providing education and resources for its surrounding community, and across New York City, all exhibitions and programs-including artist talks, artist-led workshops, and guided tours for school and museum groups-are free and open to the public.FLAG provides various projects, prizes, and initiatives that offer dynamic support to contemporary artists. Its recurring Spotlight series features a new or never-before-exhibited artwork accompanied by a commissioned piece of writing, encouraging focused and thoughtful dialogues between the visual arts and critics, scholars, poets, and beyond. The Suzanne Deal Booth / FLAG Art Foundation Prize comprises a $200,000 unrestricted award to an artist along with two solo exhibitions-originating at The Contemporary Austin, Austin, TX, and traveling to FLAG-an accompanying publication, and related public programming.Over the years, FLAG has collaborated with local, national, and international organizations including Art &amp; Newport, Newport, RI, The Harlem Children's Zone, New York, NY, The Lab and Museum School, New York, NY, New Curators, London, UK, and New York Road Runners, New York, NY, to reach an audience of all ages and backgrounds.The FLAG Art Foundation was founded by Glenn Fuhrman, an art patron, philanthropist, and alongside his wife Amanda, a Co-Founder of The Fuhrman Family Foundation. Fuhrman is a Trustee of New York-Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, and The Tate Americas Foundation, New York, NY. He is a Board Member of The Institute of Contemporary Art, Philadelphia, PA, the 92nd Street Y, New York, NY, and The Central Park Conservancy, New York, NY.Image: Gabriella Hirst. How to Make A Bomb, 2015-ongoing. Digital print, 20 x 30 inches (50.8 x 76.2 cm). Courtesy the Artist

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The Rose Garden Conference

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