In the normal course of things, there are two good reasons for lingering in the sunny atrium of the Smithsonian's Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, down on the south side of the Mall. There's the huge arrangement of exotic flowers that greets you as you come in, and the installation of contemporary Asian art that you encounter further on. One of those two reasons isn't there right now, but it's hard to say which one. The official art program may be on temporary hold, but that's let the flowers morph into a wall-filling installation that's so ambitious, it's hardly fair to call it an "arrangement" anymore. It's closer to contemporary sculpture. Since 1997, Smithsonian horticulturalist Cheyenne Kim has been in sole charge of greeting visitors with flowers, using a special fund established by Else Sackler, wife of the museum's founder. Kim was born in Japan in 1941, and he trained in the traditional craft of ikebana.
