Symmetrical work is often thought be easier to do… but to challenge ourselves, more focus on interesting craftsmanship, added details and add impact on work with contrasts.

ABOUT CONTRAST - Creating contrast can be accomplished in the following ways…

1.         By color

2.         Light and dark

3.         By form, internal or external

4.         Density of key element, internal or external

5.         Contrast in materials…. Floral and others…. Organic and inorganic

6.         Compact and transparent

7.         Texture

8.         Horizontal or vertical

9.         Manipulated or not manipulated plant materials

10.       Wood and Herbaceous

11.       SYMMETRICAL and asymmetrical – dominance or One

12.       Fresh and Dried

13.       Active and passive (forms going upward or downward

14.       Static and dynamic

15.       Curvy and straight

16.       Stylized and natural (original)

17.       Heavy and light

            And more….

The knowledge and appreciation for Contrasts and Harmonies become an important discussion about works. 

Emotional Expression in our work defines the creation of Harmony and Contrast.
Harmony is the ‘Builder’- building process.

Contrast is the ‘Pay Attention-er’ (Gregor’s self-made English) the expression to create attention

Construction

Wood Structure – Large Poplar Wood sphere (very light) – the finish is deliberately rough – cut with  with chainsaw.  Thinking Autumn… Tree cutting, to make something out of the leftovers and scraps. 

Tell the story of scraps…. repeated use of multiple arcs of Clematis vines – repetition of cut pieces with occasional straight pieces included. They are also overlapping at the equator level of the sphere - rhythm created, some in and out, up and down with 2 sizes of simple tubes covered with Clematis bark. I like to work with various parts or forms of one material – with its various parts or forms, its ‘floss’(seed heads), little disks cut from the thick vine (with hole) on wire – dancing in the air circling around the flowers. 

Water tubes – there are many, but are discreetly hidden, covered with Clematis bark.

The Botanicals

The flowers provide the AUTUMN SONG!!   Colorful play….  Color expression is not loud like a Trumpet…. but is more like a flute from loud to softer tones… approaching the melancholy of winter.

Design  – Symmetrical

Style -   Decorative

Phalaenopsis – soft presence of brown

Scabiosa atropurpurea – deep burgundy

Ivy vine – in autumnal rosewood tones, winding horizontally rather than vertically through the blossoms.

The Effect

Wooden part is quantitatively dominant, more….  Herbaceous portion is less, subordinate. The design is suitably presented on weathered wood table.  Viburnum leaves in Autumn red floats beautifully… the candles illuminating the room casting warm glow in the guests’ faces for a very rustic ambience. 

Sketches

(click to enlarge)

A story of different surfaces… Within the iron frame, a rusty iron plate is attached – the color and texture have changed over the years from the sun, rain, snow and wind.  The wooden panel is the focus Wood Talk element - it is 600 years old from an old mill in the Eifel area, close to my home. I received it as a gift… a highly treasured piece.

Construction

Within the iron framework, the rusty iron plate is hung with an overlay of strategically placed 600 years old wooden panel. The other wood elements include:

• straight Hazelnut twigs, - hung upside down, hooked onto the metal plate 

• fruit tree twigs (old and curvy) – these make a strong wintery statement, built into a transparent structure which crosses the heavy oak panel

• Some tightly made garlands become the manipulated hand-crafted forms. They both used finest copper wire, twisted together to build the tapered downward to a point form.  They are very calming forms, made from hundreds of little parts (2-3cm)

1. Garland of tightly gathered plum leaves (dry now)

2. Very detailed long braid of many, many willow sticks and mixed with 2 different lichen pieces of different color and texture 

• Convex end slice of a round ball is covered with Lichen scraps.  When wet, it comes alive greyish green.  This is for me, one of the most subtle vital sign of plant life.

The Botanicals

Design – Asymmetrical

Style – Graphic contrast

The flower selection concentrates on wintery white, not much green…. Some grey.

Plants:

• Sanseveria kirkii – on wire, wrapped with Clematis bark (fresh, but will last a month). They cross the more vertical botanical vertical statements 

• Tillandsia xerographic – attached on thick and strong construction wires covered with organic fiber

Flowers:

• Amaryllis ‘Challenger’ – Hippeastrum vittatum

• Euphorbia fulgens

• Helleborus orientalis x hyb. ‘Magic Green’

• Nerine bowdenii – white variety

The Effect

This piece is suitable for an entrance hall of a hotel - to welcome guests, for conference or meeting décor.

It is not very deep, but is 2.30 meter high and 1 meter wide.

Because I am depicting Winter, it is highly reduced, intentionally not opulent and more sculptural.  On the flower front… minimal flower use to illustrate the sparsity of flowers in this time of the year – winter season.

We really love WOOD, and to illustrate Winter season… the complementary herbaceous work is lean on quantity. The opulence of the Autumn season is much more overwhelming with color and quantity. The 2 seasons are the story of Contrast.

After the history changing Covid event… we have had the opportunity to observe nature fully and to see and feel the colors and textures of the seasons.

I wish that my vocabulary is richer in the English language….  that I could speak better about the highest goal in Floristry and Floral Art – it is to express Emotion, the enormous richness of Cultures.       

Sketches

(click to enlarge)