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Studio Art
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“There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance; pray, love, remember: and there is pansies, that’s for thoughts”.ShakespeareThe Victorians were incurable romantics. In an age now synonymous with prudery and hypocrisy the 19th century was a time when the celebration of flowers pervaded every aspect of life. Cottagers spent their spare time developing gardens filled with an unruly profusion of colorful blooms. Gertrude Jeykll turned the tide against regimented uniform planting into a more artistic view of horticulture where plants were used to paint a picture. William Morris used floral themes in his textile designs so that many Victorian homes had walls covered with honeysuckle, chrysanthemums, and other stylised blooms. Young women sitting in their parlours waiting for their prince to come spent their hours industriously employed in embroidery, decoupage, painting, playing the piano and flower pressing. In this repressed society where relationships were conducted with the utmost propriety it was difficult for someone to know if the object of their heart’s desire reciprocated their secret longings. Young females were so strictly chaperoned that they generally never had a minute alone with a man so a complex and intricate language developed with which the Victorians could communicate their feelings: the language of flowers. A bouquet could convey a myriad of messages depending on the flowers included. Forget-me-nots were true love, pansies for thoughts, jonquils meant “I desire a return of affection” and peach blossom said, “I am your captive”. But the same flower could convey a different message just by its color. A musk rose represented capricious beauty, a white rose stated “I am worthy of you” whereas a yellow rose meant jealousy or that love was waning. Imagine the eagerness of a young woman on receiving a bunch of flowers from an admirer to read the secrets they held. Pressed flowers became tender memories of those joyful times. The faded rose bud carefully placed between the yellowing pages of a book of romantic poetry either told of first love lost or present love remembered. In the same way other important events in life were preserved for posterity; the wedding bouquet lovingly dismembered then recreated into an elegant display, wildflowers collected on a walk in the countryside or favorite blooms from the cottage garden. Pressing flowers as a pastime is not as popular these days. The world moves so much more quickly, there doesn’t seem to be enough time to smell the roses let alone preserve them. But there are many fine artists working in this medium, creating works of fragile beauty that remind us of an altogether gentler age. In a technologically driven world it is wonderful to receive a gift created by hand whether it is a card, bookmark or a picture of flowers from some secret garden. It is not only a craft for the professional; anyone can begin this art form without much expense. Heavy second hand books are suitable for pressing leaves; wooden presses with layers of cardboard and blotting paper can be bought or even made for other botanical specimens. Small presses are suitable for the more dainty flowers and larger ones good for Queen Anne’s lace, grasses, and single roses.
Even if you don’t have your own garden you can buy flowers from a florist, grow a few plants in pots or window box, or make friends with a devoted gardener.There are also several businesses that sell flowers already pressed and ready for use. There is some debate as to how long you should press a flower. Some experts say six weeks, others a few days. Really it depends on the temperature. Keeping your presses in a warm place can speed up the drying process and of course there are now people using their microwave oven to facilitate this. Old phone books are useful for storage. Name each one with what plants are stored there to save time searching later. Check these periodically as sometimes you will accidentally press a few “wee beasties” within the flower and there’s nothing so disheartening as going to retrieve a bloom only to find it eaten. Sometimes placing flowers in the fridge for a few minutes after taking them out of the press and before storing them will prevent this but they should not be left in there too long as they will get damp and go mouldy. Cardboard can be bought ready cut to be made into cards or in larger sheets. It is often interesting to use different colored backgrounds although white gives a fresh clean look. Always build from the back to the front. Place leaves first, then your secondary flowers, and then your primaries. You can use the basic rules of floristry (using odd numbers for example) or you can break every rule. You can use abstract designs or create intricate garlands filled with summer wildflowers. You can make cards displaying blooms from your garden or spectacular bursts of artistry in a picture with flowers you bought from a florist. Use flowers to celebrate a special occasion, decorate place names for a dinner party or glue them onto picture frames. The possibilities are endless. On a bleak winter’s day it is comforting to see a reminder of summer hanging on your wall. It is also cheering to receive a handcrafted card when you’re in hospital or feeling low. Most of all it is reassuring in a sometime frightening world to resurrect a link to an age of courtesy and manners where the language of flowers brought many moments of joy. ©Jen Longshaw 2001-2006 Please do not copy in any manner, print or electronic, without permission from the author. Subscribe to a FREE Newsletter. |
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Trial and error are necessary for
discovering the best plants for drying. Fleshy stems are out as are woody
specimens. The tried and true blooms such as pansies, violas, ferns,
buttercups, daisies, larkspurs and heartsease retain their color through
the years although pictures hung in bright light will fade in time in much
the same way as watercolour paintings. Experiment to find out what works,
this is part of the fun.