In a quiet studio tucked into Colorado Springs’ historic Trolley District, a centuries-old Japanese artform is blooming in an unexpected place. Heidi Almosara, founder of Yanagi Botanic Arts, offers the local community something rare and beautiful: the chance to experience Ikebana—the mindful, meditative Japanese art of flower arrangement.
A Long Journey
Almosara’s journey began far from Colorado, in the gardens of Kyoto, Japan.
With a background in fine arts and a teaching career spanning multiple universities, Almosara describes herself as a lifelong learner. As a military wife, she found herself living in a new place every couple of years. To embrace the culture and find community, Almosara sought out classes to take as a way to connect with and learn more about her current home. While living abroad, she went to lunch with a friend and found herself an attendee of a performance by Shuho Hananofu, a renowned Ikebana master and educator. In a 30-minute performance, the artist arranged a single flower, a branch, a leaf—all in silence, all on her knees.
“It was the first thing I encountered in Japan that I felt I needed to understand,” Almosara recalls.
A Modern Approach to a Traditional Art
Almosara soon found there were more than 3,000 schools that taught Ikebana, one of which has been teaching since the 15th century. From there, she narrowed it down to the three main schools and chose to attend classes at Sogetsu. Founded in 1927, it is a school known for its modern approach to this traditional art.
She began studying Ikebana, immersing herself in training with teachers and classmates from around the world. After three years of studying, she found she could become a certified teacher. After achieving her teacher certification, she was given a name: Yanagi, meaning “willow,” symbolizing resilience flow, and grace. It was a material that Almosara mastered during her time at Sogetsu, and that name now graces her studio in Colorado Springs, where she teaches small, intimate classes aimed at slowing down, tuning in, and collaborating with nature.
The Move to Colorado Springs
After her husband became a reservist and began working in a civilian role, the couple considered relocating to a place of their own choosing. After many military moves, they relished the opportunity to make a list of all the things they wanted in a home and take themselves there to start a new chapter in life. They relocated to Colorado Springs in 2022, and she found a welcoming creative community, as well as a local chapter of Ikebana International.
Her studio opened in April 2024, and Yanagi Botanic Arts is already blossoming. Workshops are hosted regularly, including beginner and freestyle classes with materials provided and vessels sometimes hand-thrown by Almosara mother-in-law. Students work in quiet harmony, listening to instrumental music, handling tools with care, and discovering the Zen-like philosophy at the heart of Ikebana: a respect for impermanence, asymmetry and collaboration with nature.
Almosara features some of her recent works in her studio. They are composed of dried naturals arranged in Ikebana style, and painted white. Life here is typically lived in full color. It can be busy and loud. Some of life is rooted in intentionality, but much of the day-to-day can become sheer necessity. Almosara explains that this was the heart of painting her art in a solid color.
“When you remove color, you see shape and texture more clearly,” she explains. “It’s a different way of paying attention.”
A Moment To Breathe
Almosara hopes her classes offer more than artistic skill.
“We live fast,” she says. “Ikebana gives people a moment to breathe.”
As the pace of life continues to speed up, Yanagi Botanic Arts offers a sanctuary—where flowers are more than decoration, and arranging them becomes an act of mindfulness, memory, and meaning.
Address: 517 S. Cascade Ave., Ste E.
Website: https://www.heidialmosara.com/yanagibotanicarts
Instagram: @YanagiBotanicArts