Back Again

So I kind of let this blog go for quite a long time. I had been looking for a new platform, then a new website, then I just got busy... and here we are. ( For now)

 Above: " Fine Day For A Swim"  Pressed flowers on canvas. The background is painted, the sea life is all pressed botanical materials.

This version of " The Lion King " was created for the 2015 Philadelphia Flower Show. The entire picture was made using fall leaves. It received an Honorable Mention.

How Long ?

Recently I entered two pictures in the Pressed Plants Competition at the Philadelphia Flower Show. I finally got to make an abstract piece I've often thought of doing, as the theme for that particular class allowed us to create a work inspired by a famous artist. So I chose Kadinsky and I made this using all pressed leaves and flowers.

 

The abstract was fun to make.

 

The other picture I entered was a lot more detailed. The class called for a garden to resemble an artist's style of painting. I went with Claude Monet. This picture took much longer than the abstract because of all of the little pieces used to create the "impressionist" look.

 

 

This "Artist's Garden" took home an honorable mention. Again it 100% made with pressed flowers and other botanicals.

 

 

People always ask how long it takes to make "that" , referring to one of my petal painted pictures. I usually answer the amount of time (usually several days or weeks) that it takes to create the piece. When I think about it, I am wrong. Truth is it probably took me at least twice as long. Pressed flowers is a great form of art that is also timely, not only in creating artistic works, but in collecting, preparing, pressing, sorting and organizing sometimes hundreds to thousands of botanicals. It's a process that is redundant at times, yet calming to me. It's my passion. It's what I do. So I don't think much about the time and the process, but the end result, which despite the labors, is the true reward. 



 



2013 "Brilliant" Philadelphia Flower Show

From January through March each year almost all of my "free" time is spent preparing entries for the Philadelphia Flower Show. My "free" time is often "sleep" time.

This year the show's title was "Brilliant". It was a tribute to Great Britain. Of most interest to me was the "Pressed Plant" exhibit, where entries from all over the world, including mine were exhibited and hung to compete for "oohs, wows and ahhhs" and of course ribbons. My entries usually take several weeks each to prepare.

My first picture took three weeks longer thank I had planned, as happens with pressed flower art.  Making those botanicals work like paint is sometimes a challenge.( I won an Honorable Mention on this entry. )

That left me much less time than desired to finish two other entries.
With ideas in mind, I first thought to rethink my choices for my "Stonehenge" entry ,but I have always wanted to do a castle, and I couldn't stop myself. I did however replan the structure and intricacy of the planned castle entry. The result, though not what I intended, did come out nice, and did bring in a second place ribbon to my surprise.

With only two nights left to create an entry for the "Royal Wedding" class, I had to completely abandon my visions of a beautiful wedding gown made with the sheerest of flower petals. My need to think and create fast put me on a whimsical track. Certainly not the caliber of a picture I wanted to enter in the show , but with the only other choice being not enetering, I came up with this piece:

This ended up with an Honorable Mention.

 

So my never ending learning continues. I know the end result in art ( and in life) is not always what we plan, but it is what we create when things just don't go as planned. Mistakes, and "things" happen. Only my first picture turned out as I imagined, after struggling too long on the bridge.  The other two were a result of timing.  It's not always a bad thing.

 

- Micki

 



Philadelphia Flower Show Entries

After a few years as serving as chair or vice -chair at the show and not competing in this art form, I am happy to say that I completed all four of my entries for the Philadelphia Flower Show. It was a tough task, as I was a bit rusty in the competition area. In addition, for the first time this year, I branched out from the Pressed Plants Class, and entered the Jewelry Class. Though not one was perfect, I was pleased with my entries, and the fact that I was able to get them all done.

Here are my entries for the 2011 Philadelphia Flower Show" Springtime in Paris":

Class 142 "Bon Appetit"

Made from bark, leaves and flowers, this class called for a picture depicting a cafe.

Class 143 "VIN"






Requirement: A Scene incorporating wine or a vineyard.

Made with bark, leaves, roses, hydrangea, tendrils and more all natural plant materials.







Class 145 "La Boheme"

This was a three dimensional class, calling for an opera purse.

My Jewelry Entry:
Class 181 " Heure D' Aller! " (Time to Go)






The objective was to create a wearable timepiece inspired by a french jeweler.

Truthfully I was inspired by my materials, more than anything else! Materials used: cloves, sago palm, birch bark, lotus stem and dogwood petals.

This class, unlike Pressed Plants, allows for painting of plant materials. Because this is new to me, I was a bit crazy trying to make it all come together.