Granny never had flowers like these bouquets!
These flowers are not the kind that sit politely in a vase on top of a crisp, white doily. Oh no! They sprawl, they tilt, they make themselves known.
From the petals cut from old textbooks to the stitched embroidery, they are held together with intention as well as a little impulse.
Where granny’s flowers were always in good taste and suggested comfort, these refuse traditional arrangements in favour of a wild and unkept look. They might have been pulled from the neighbour’s flower bed by an innocent child wishing to surprise his beloved Nan. Leaves overlap here and there keeping that secret from prying eyes.
Grandma might be scandalized but she certainly wouldn’t show it. These flowers disrupt the quiet of the sitting room. They show attitude, a bit of tongue in cheek fun and some degree of disobedience, and who doesn’t have a touch of rebellion in them?
The details for this collection of collage florals.
Bouquets are collaged on a 5 x 7 painted canvas. The bouquet is then placed in a white shadow box to be displayed on a wall.
The idea for collage florals came to me from a comment made by my granddaughter who said her mother didn’t like painted flowers on the wall because they were old lady flowers. HA!
I love reusing sheets of music, wrapping paper, adding embroidery from old pillowcases, vintage books, my own printed papers, etc.
As I worked on each canvas, titles came to mind. However, at the last minute, I decided to search for old or forgotten expressions and they became the titles for each floral bouquet. I saved the first set of titles for other work.
Can you think of any other old sayings you haven’t heard in a while? Maybe you have a saying in your country that is wise and that we don’t use in the English language. I would love your feedback.
And yes, the floral art work is available. Contact me for information if they speak to you. No NFT.
Louise
Dear Louise, what a wonderful collection of collages. I admire your fantasy how you configured these beautiful bouquets. Congratulations dear friend!!!!
I allowed myself lots of room to play and no room for strict rules. Collage is flexible art – if I didn’t like a leaf or flower in one position, I could always change it or remove it completely or look for a substitution. This was fun! Thanks Birgit.
It’s nice how some extend beyond the picture frame
This is something I would not have done many years ago…after all, I nearly called these bouquets Ripped Florals because I allowed the ripped paper edges to show. I continue to experiment and play with colours and shapes. Just having fun. Thanks Graham.