The Power of the Flower

(The following post is from my recent studio-newsletter blog and I thought I would share here as well.)

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Below, I am going to show some recent flower preservations/creations I have done for three occasions (two funerals and a baby shower gift), and then below that, will be some of my personal musings about the power that flowers have (and their meanings), and lastly some derivative creative prints made from scans/photos of the original pieces that are available to order.

Children are Like Flowers From God

~ a Fragrant Blessing of Sweetness and Grace

This framed dried flower creation was made from various garden flowers I collected this summer and dried. I did something different—I incorporated acrylic paint (for the moon, stars and calligraphy) and also used rick-rack and some french knot embroidery. This baby shower gift was created for a young couple who are expecting their first child and who love flowers and nature!

The next set of dried flower pieces were put together from a small sampling of flowers from the funeral of an older church friend I had known many years. I made a piece for her husband and each of her child. At the funeral, the hymn “The Blessing” was sung and I was very moved by this, and I incorporated some of the lyrics into a small calligraphy print that was part of each framed keepsake.

These final pieces were for a young couple who tragically lost a four-month old infant in early July. I was deeply moved with grief for the sudden death of this healthy little girl, having been contacted from information I had left at a local florist shop last year. When I was first asked if I preserved flowers, I excitedly said, “Yes, do you have a wedding bouquet?” I was immediately stunned and silenced into saying, “I am so very sorry for your loss,” after she replied that she had flowers from her four-month old baby’s funeral.

This set of pieces were an honor to work on, and I felt the weight of their grief during the entire process. The main piece was for them, and the smaller heart for her sister, and the other two pieces for each set of grandparents. In discussing what they wanted in their design, I suggested some embroidery. She liked that idea and asked me to create something around “Our Strawberry Princess.”

Sometimes over the years in the process of doing artwork for a family or individual, there is opportunity for personal care and connection that goes beyond a work-for-hire.

This was definitely one of those situations and quite heart-breaking. When they came to pick the pieces up, they brought their older two (yet very young) children. They loved what I did, and hugs were also exchanged.

I’ve been thinking lately about the various power that flowers have. In the 70’s, there was a popular slogan of “Flower Power” and according to Wikipedia, this is the summary:

“Flower power was a slogan used during the late 1960s and early 1970s as a symbol of passive resistance and nonviolence.^[1] It is rooted in the opposition movement to the Vietnam War.^[2] The expression was coined by the American Beat poet Allen Ginsberg in 1965 as a means to transform war protests into peaceful affirmative spectacles.^[3][4][5] Hippies embraced the symbolism by dressing in clothing with embroidered flowers and vibrant colors, wearing flowers in their hair, and distributing flowers to the public, becoming known as flower children.^[6] The term later became generalized as a modern reference to the hippie movement and so-called counterculture of drugs, psychedelic music, psychedelic art and social permissiveness.”

Offhand I think of three other powerful usages of flowers…

• “I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valleys.” (Song of Solomon 2:1)
• “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet”” – Shakespeare
• The German’s utilization of the Edelweiss flower emblem on WWII uniforms, and later that beautiful song created and re-set in purpose/imaging in the Sound of Music.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=tu-lcwhZcEs%3Ffeature%3Doembed

I also think of one of my very favorite flowers–the lilac–and the power of childhood associations that accompany this particular blossom. And I think of how certain flowers are selected to communicate powerful feelings and thoughts based on their associations.

The following artwork I created for myself (but is available in prints) based on the lilac, the grasshopper and blackberries. These three symbols have been powerful personal symbols in my life and relate to my childhood, my father and my uncle.

Below is one extensive general guide to how flowers are selected for any occasion ranging from a wedding to a funeral to Valentine’s Day to anniversaries (however there are many more links/thoughts/beliefs to be found online…this collection comes from “Flowers and Their Meanings: The Language of Flowers”):

• Amaryllis—Pride, pastoral poetry
• Anemone—Forsaken
• Aster—Symbol of love, daintiness
• Azalea—Take care of yourself for me, temperance, fragile passion, Chinese symbol of womanhood
• Bachelor button—Single blessedness
• Begonia—Beware
• Bells-of-Ireland—Good luck
• Bittersweet—Truth 
• Bluebell—Humility
• Cactus—Endurance
• Calla—Beauty
• Candytuft—Indifference
• Carnation—Fascination, women love
  • pink—I’ll never forget you
  • red—My heart aches for you, admiration
  • purple—Capriciousness
  • white—Sweet and lovely, innocence, pure love, woman’s good luck gift
  • solid color—Yes
  • striped—No, refusal, sorry I can’t be with you, wish I could be with you
• Cattail—Peace, prosperity
• Chrysanthemum
  • red—I love you
  • white—Truth
  • yellow—Slighted love
• Cleome—Elope with me 
• Coreopsis—Always cheerful 
• Crocus—Cheerfulness 
• Cyclamen—Resignation and good-bye
• Daffodil—Regard, unequalled love, you’re the only one, the sun is always shining when I’m with you (see also: Jonquil, Narcissus)
• Daisy—Innocence, loyal love, I’ll never tell, purity
• Dandelion—Faithfulness, happiness
• Daylily—Coquetry, Chinese emblem for mother
• Evening primrose—Inconstancy
• Fern—Magic, fascination, confidence and shelter
  • Maidenhair Fern—Secret bond of love
• Fir—Time 
• Flax—Domestic symbol
• Forget-me-not—True love, memories
• Forsythia—Anticipation
• Gardenia—You’re lovely, secret love
• Garlic—Courage, strength
• Geranium—Stupidity, folly
• Gladiolus—Give me a break, I’m really sincere, flower of the gladiators
• Gloxinia—Love at first sight
• Grass—Submission
• Heather
  • lavender—Admiration, solitude
  • white—Protection, wishes will come true
• Hellebore—Tranquilize my anxiety, anxiety
• Hibiscus—Delicate beauty 
• Holly—Defense, domestic happiness
• Hyacinth—Games and sports, rashness
  • blue—Constancy
  • purple—I am sorry, please forgive me, sorrow
  • red—Play
  • white—Loveliness, I’ll pray for you
  • yellow—Jealousy
• Hydrangea—Thank you for understanding, frigidity, heartlessness
• Iris—Your friendship means so much to me, faith, hope
• Ivy—Wedded love, fidelity, friendship, affection
• Jonquil—Love me, affection returned, desire, sympathy, desire for affection returned (see also: Daffodil, Narcissus)
• Larkspur (pink)—Fickleness
• Lilac—Old love
• Lily (see also: Tiger Lily)
  • orange—Hatred
  • white—Virginity, purity, majesty, it’s heavenly to be with you
  • yellow—I’m walking on air, false and gay
• Lily-of-the-valley—Sweetness, tears of the Virgin Mary, return to happiness, humility, you’ve made my life complete
• Magnolia—Nobility 
• Marigold—Cruelty, grief, jealousy
• Mistletoe—Kiss me, affection
• Mock orange—Deceit
• Monkshood—Beware, a deadly foe is near
• Moss—Maternal love, charity 
• Myrtle—Love, Hebrew emblem of marriage
• Narcissus—Egotism, formality, stay as sweet as you are (see also: Daffodil, Jonquil)
• Nasturtium—Conquest, victory in battle
• Orange blossom—Innocence, eternal love, marriage, and fruitfulness
• Orchid—Love, beauty, refinement, beautiful lady, Chinese symbol for many children
• Peony—Shame, happy life, happy marriage
• Petunia—Resentment, anger, your presence soothes me
• Pine—Hope, pity
• Poppy—Eternal sleep, oblivion, imagination
  • red—Pleasure
  • white—Consolation
  • yellow—Wealth, success
• Primrose—I can’t live without you
• Rosebud—Beauty and you, a heart innocent of love
  • red—Pure and lovely
  • white—Girlhood
  • moss—Confessions of love
• Rose
  • pink—Perfect happiness, please believe me
  • red—Love, I love you
  • dark crimson—Mourning
  • yellow—Decrease of love, jealousy, try to care
  • white—Innocence and purity, I am worthy of you, you’re heavenly, secrecy and silence
  • white and red mixed—Unity, flower emblem of England
  • white, dried—Death is preferable to loss of virtue
  • white, withered—Transient impression, fleeting beauty, you made no impression
  • tea—I’ll remember always
  • damask—Persian ambassador of love
  • thornless—Love at first sight
  • leaf—You may hope
  • bouquet of mature blooms—Gratitude
• Smilax—Loveliness 
• Snapdragon—Deception, gracious lady          
• Stephanotis—Happiness in marriage, desire to travel
• Stock—Bonds of affection, promptness, you’ll always be beautiful to me
• Sweetpea—Good-bye, departure, blissful pleasure, thank you for a lovely time 
• Tiger lily—Wealth, pride (see also: Lily)
• Tulip—Perfect lover, fame, flower emblem of Holland
  • red—Believe me, declaration of love
  • yellow—There’s sunshine in your smile
  • variegated—Beautiful eyes
• Violet—Modesty
  • blue—Watchfulness, faithfulness, I’ll always be there
• Wisteria—Will you dance with me?
• Zinnia
  • magenta—Lasting affection provider
  • mixed—Thinking (or in memory) or an absent friend
  • scarlet—Constancy
  • white—Goodness

Other Symbolism

• Bouquet of withered flowers—Rejected love
• Dead leaves—Sadness

Below is an 8 x 20 inch dried flower creation for sale; $100 including shipping. I had some garden flowers leftover from the baby shower project and found a way to use them up!

If you know of anyone who would be interested in commissioning a unique dried flowers creation of any size/purpose for their home, or a bride who might want her bouquet preserved, I sure would appreciate you passing my information along. Thank you!

The following are derivative pieces I recently created that can be ordered as a matted only or framed print in several standard sizes, or as a notecard. There is one “blank base design” where you could have me add in your own custom calligraphy saying (like the Picasso quote was added) for an additional charge. Please contact me if you are interested in ordering or if you have questions; pricing is shown below.

Share the encouragement with this quote. Choose either a 5×7 card/set or matted print.

Please note that the size of the matted print is the size of the matte itself, not the print inside. As an example, an 8 x 10 matted piece will have a 5 x 7 print and with the matte, fit into an 8 x 10 frame.

Shipping is included in item price. If you purchase multiple items and shipping costs less than expected, excess shipping fees will be refunded to you.

Individual Card $7.50

Set of 8 Cards $47.50

5×7 Inches Matted $12.50

8×10 Inches Matted $20.00

11×14 Inches Matted $38.00

16×20 Inches Matted $100.00

(Above) Children Are Like Flowers From God (horizontal)

(Above) Add Your Own Calligraphy Saying!

(Above) Children Are Like Flowers From God (vertical)

(Above) Dried Flower Creation With Moon (horizontal)

(Above) Dried Flower Creation With Moon (vertical)

(Above) Heart Wreath on Crackled Wood

(Above) The Purpose of Art