SEEING/NOTICING COLOR/BOTANICALS
To arrange flowers or to draw them is to practice ATTENTION.
In this week-long high summer investigation of beauty and interpretation we’ll get good at noticing...
Dates:
Monday, June 29 - Sunday, July 5, 2026
Led by florist Sarah Ryhanen and artist/cognitive researcher Anjali Shankar the week will be structured around garden walks and translating the season into floral arrangements in the studio. Afternoons will be spent working on translating those flowers, plants and compositions to the page.
We’ll be paying close attention to characteristics of line, light, color but also to perception in general. Why do we see some things and not others? Why do we interpret reality differently than the person sitting next to us?
Anjali Shankar
Anjali is a Brooklyn-based multimedia artist whose practice consists of painting, sewing, tattooing and metalworking. She believes the process of play is key in how we make. To play is to experiment, and to experiment is to learn without the pressure of a destination. The more that is learned, the more enjoyment comes out of the physical and emotional act of making. Anjali’s artistic journey has been shaped by her commitment to experimentation, reflection and education. Through her work, she seeks to challenge perceptions and encourage a deeper understanding of different artistic mediums. Anjali holds a BFA in Painting and a Master of Arts in Teaching from the Maryland Institute College of Art. Outside the studio she enjoys writing, caring for her plants and aquarium, and taking long walks in the sun.
Sarah Ryhanen
Sarah Ryhanen is a farmer, florist, and educator working at the intersection of beauty and utility. In 2006, she opened the first Saipua studio in Red Hook, Brooklyn, selling her mother’s olive oil soap and developing a self-taught floral practice.
Over the following decade, Saipua became internationally known for its event design, helping inspire a generation of florists to work with seasonal, local, and foraged materials in asymmetrical forms.
In 2011, Ryhanen purchased Worlds End Farm to grow flowers for Saipua and to house her floristry teaching programs. By 2022, the farm had evolved into a campus supporting students engaged in land-based work, from shepherding to soapmaking.
Ryhanen now lives and works primarily at Worlds End alongside her parents and an evolving cohort of artists and farmers.
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This class will take place rain or shine Monday, June 29 through Sunday, July 5, 2026
Students arrive in the afternoon on Monday, are settled in and are then asked to be at dinner at 7:30pm. Subsequent meals can be taken in solitude though we typically eat together in the large breezeway of the barn. Students leave on Sunday by 4pm and are welcome to end the week with lunch at coyotecafe, the farm’s monthly drop-in cafe.
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Worlds End Farm is located in Esperance, NY, 30 miles west of Albany. Transportation to and from the farm must be arranged by you personally.
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There are four private rooms available in our main barn. Each has a double or queen bed.
Students opting to camp can do so with their own gear in the lower field. Students staying off site should book their own lodging in the area.
All students will have access to shared bathrooms and our communal kitchen. There is wifi and excellent cell phone service for most networks.
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$1,850 includes instruction, all meals and lodging onsite (private bedroom, shared bathrooms)
$1,400 includes instruction, all meals and students will camp or arrange their own lodging offsite
Payment plans available upon request; please write admin@saipua.com.
A 50% deposit will be due now with the remainder due a month before the class start date.