BLOOM: API Lookbook 2023

An artist collaboration to celebrate the beauty and diversity of Asian/Pacific Island countries.
Our theme for 2023 is to design characters based on national and native flowers.

Feature DateArtistFlower/PlantCountryRegion
May 1P.berry_Art (Pocky)Tiare MaoriCook IslandsPacific Islands
May 1s.apruaTagimouciaFijiPacific Islands
May 2PandamanderBougainvilleaGuamPacific Islands
May 2theAndyLaoPlumeria FrangipanisKiribatiPacific Islands
May 3maxie | maxfoxartMeriaMarshall IslandsPacific Islands
May 3kyunstFrangipanisMicronesiaPacific Islands
May 4JennbastiCalophyllumNauruPacific Islands
May 4steffimadestuffTeuila Torch GingerSamoaPacific Islands
May 5CloverleafpieHibiscusSolomon IslandsPacific Islands
May 5SketchyYoonFrangipanisTokelauPacific Islands
May 6PoondaweiHeilalaTongaPacific Islands
May 6t3t0beanSea HibiscusTuvaluPacific Islands
May 7Steven TranFiti PuaNiuePacific Islands
May 7kaorichaPlumeriaPalauPacific Islands
May 8camipoopedartAbelmoschus maniholVanuatuPacific Islands
May 8LunarniaPlum BlossomChinaEastern Asia
May 9FreudHong Kong OrchidHong KongEastern Asia
May 9davanchiSakuraJapanEastern Asia
May 10tsaiberpunkMugunghwaSouth KoreaEastern Asia
May 10aishiiartLotusMacauEastern Asia
May 11Charissa CurielScabiosa ComosaMongoliaEastern Asia
May 11friedmackerelPlum BlossomTaiwanEastern Asia
May 12Hannah AvgustPicea OrientalisKazakhstanCentral Asia
May 13aqxinTulipKyrgyzstanCentral Asia
May 13shiyuchaIris HoogianaTajikistanCentral Asia
May 14VividAmbitionsRed RhododendronTibetCentral Asia
May 14minimalaifuRed RoseTurkmenistanCentral Asia
May 15FeiyuCotton FlowerUzbekistanCentral Asia
May 15PumpkinUnicornSimporBruneiSoutheastern Asia
May 16Vincent FungRumduolCambodiaSoutheastern Asia
May 16sunset_opalMoon OrchidIndonesiaSoutheastern Asia
May 17Kim Thai NguyenDok ChampaLaosSoutheastern Asia
May 17ViiHibiscus Rosa-SinesisMalaysiaSoutheastern Asia
May 18Ting TeyJasminePhilippinesSoutheastern Asia
May 18GrimlingVanda Miss JoaquimSingaporeSoutheastern Asia
May 19GrakanartsCassia Fistula LinnThailandSoutheastern Asia
May 19pippentonHibiscusTimor-LesteSoutheastern Asia
May 20yeoukoLotusVietnamSoutheastern Asia
May 20yueliiPadaukMyanmarSoutheastern Asia
May 21ResidentLemonJTulipAfghanistanSouthern Asia
May 21Adriansloth_Water LilyBangladeshSouthern Asia
May 22AlisenMakesBlue PoppyBhutanSouthern Asia
May 22IvyLotusIndiaSouthern Asia
May 23CharmiiWater LilyIranSouthern Asia
May 23suyaPink RoseMaldivesSouthern Asia
May 24NoroijuRhododendronNepalSouthern Asia
May 24HIJI_ARTJasminePakistanSouthern Asia
May 25Alex LuongBlue Water LilySri LankaSouthern Asia
May 25bora & MiyueForget-me-notArmeniaWestern Asia
May 25JasuiKhari BulbulAzerbaijanWestern Asia
May 26AriDate PalmBahrainWestern Asia
May 26AkashiCyclamenCyprusWestern Asia
May 26yashuRed PoppyGeorgiaWestern Asia
May 27fancy_plantsRoseIraqWestern Asia
May 27Weika25Anemone CoronariaIsraelWestern Asia
May 27DarkCoreBlack IrisJordanWestern Asia
May 28Lulu TangArfajKuwaitWestern Asia
May 28Lucielle DreamCyclamenLebanonWestern Asia
May 28PortmaiJasmineOmanWestern Asia
May 29Julie NguyenFaqqua IrisPalestineWestern Asia
May 29IntoTheButtonSea LavenderQatarWestern Asia
May 29HewmahnbeanArfajSaudi ArabiaWestern Asia
May 30Jubel NaomiJasmineSyriaWestern Asia
May 30Mana MaxtedTulipTurkey (Rep. of Türkiye)Western Asia
May 31Sam SumulongTribulus OmanenseUnited Arab EmiratesWestern Asia
May 31cryoflowerCoffea ArabicaYemenWestern Asia
May 31ohpatpattEdelweissSiberiaNorthern Asia

BLOOM API Lookbook 2023

Introduction by AlisenMakes

All over the world, flowers and plants have always carried cultural significance. Since the world began to blossom, we have embraced flora in most cultures due to their aesthetic traits and physical properties. Many use flowers as symbols for characteristics and emotions we may not be able to see or express, such as persistence, friendship, purity, and love.This year’s API Lookbook Project shines a light on the national and native flora of Asia and the Pacific Islands. We had the honor of inviting a wide array of artists to put their creativity to the test. They challenged themselves to design characters that represent a country, island, or region based on the physical traits, habitat, history, and cultural significance of those flowers that inspired them the most. The result: a beautiful collection of illustrations, rich in so much personality, culture, and respect for each region we have highlighted this year.The planners of API Lookbook would like to give a sincere thanks to all the participants of this year’s project. Artists dedicated hours of research, collaboration, and meticulous artmaking in order to best represent their assigned countries and regions. The artwork we have seen over the past several weeks has been truly inspiring and impressive, as well as the support shared between artists. It has been a pleasure reading every kind comment and constructive feedback you all have exchanged, and the enthusiasm and care you have put into your work. We urge our viewers to follow and support each and every one of our artists on their creative journeys.We would also like to extend our warm gratitude to the API Lookbook supporters, of whom have sowed the seeds of this garden. Thank you for every follow, like, comment and share. It is because of you that this project continues to grow, and we carry on the celebration of Asian/Pacific Islanders throughout the month of May. It is our hope that by following this project, you will feel inspired to dive deeper into this colorful world around you. Build connections between the flowers that grow in API regions and those which you find right in your own backyard—and celebrate their differences. Use this as a guide to discover new beauty in the world around you, and if you can, venture out yourself to experience it all in full bloom.