Thursday 13 May 2010

A Picture and a Postcard



I picked this flower yesterday as they are almost finished. It is my snakehead fritillary, see my other posting below. I was given the dead wasp after my husband found it in the house, a perfect subject for me he said. So I decided to put them together.
I knew in my mind that they would feature together because I have this beautiful postcard. I bought it many many years ago, before I had any of the flowers in my garden. It is painted by Georg Flegel (1566-1638). It says it is called Iris, Narcissus, Chess-board Flower and Hornet.
After I painted it I found my card and placed it next to my work. We see things, images that stay with us. It is so lovely to think hundreds of years ago some one had these lovely flowers and painted them too.

Thank you for visiting and your comments, I love reading them. Life has been busy, but now after all the hard work the sun is streaming into my new creative room, it feels good. I am sewing making a beautiful quilt, hoping to enter it in a show. Out side the garden is full of bees and butterflies and I have seen two damsel flies. So many things to inspire me.
Just going for a walk to see the bluebells and breathe in that wonderful smell.
Hope you like the picture.

25 comments:

Pondside said...

Good morning, Milly.
If I saw a display such as you've made with the three pieces of art I know that I'd stop and look, for a long time.
It sounds as though you have a sewing room all sorted out - lucky you!

Carol Creech said...

Hi Milly,

This is so fun! I love seeing your beautiful artwork next to an old botanical print like that. What a great post :)

sea-blue-sky & abstracts said...

I do love your picture, Milly. What a great composition also with the fantastic postcard and the subject of your artwork. A heady mix of history, nature and art. Bye for now, Lesley

Shayna said...

I love your drawing and post! (I've a new favorite flower now, thanks to you.)

Valerianna said...

Lovely painting...! Hope to see more of them soon. I'll peruse the older posts to get a fix for now as I just found you and signed on to follow. I'm happy I did as I teach a studio class called "Exploring the Natural World" at a University here in the US and I know I will sending many students to look at your work for inspiration in the fall semester.
Happy sewing!

Windsongs and Wordhoards said...

A beautiful painting! The wasp is amazingly well painted and lifelike!
Glad you're enjoyig the spring (or is it early summer now?)
Carrie... :)

Dreaming Woods said...

hello there lovely Eileen,

you have won one of my seaside necklaces. which one you would like to get?

Delila

Prairie painter said...

How timely - I was just outside taking a photo of my two little frittilaria blossoms that are now out. Somehow they survive our Canadian prairie winter. I plan to plant more. Now I am inspired to sketch them. This is a beautiful composition. I really admire and enjoy your work.

kookaburra said...

Ooh, love your post as usual. Happy walking.

Renee Howell said...

What a wonderful paper memory relationship. And - how cool you could actually lay your hands on the post card! Beautiful capture of today and yesterday.

Frances said...

Good evening, Milly. That wise Pondside has already written what would have been my initial thought.

I absolutely love the dainty, yet strongly patterned fritillary flower. Mr. MacIntosh did well with them with his angular approach.

How wonderful to see via your post that these little flowers have been inspiring artist for centuries.

Drawings from nature...Rich beyond our dreams.

And to have the addition of the fauna to the flora. Well, Milly, your posts always deliver instant recognition of the beauty of your art, and then give us a second breath ... a way to think about nature, its eternal beauty, and then the celebrate now, then, and the future.

Best wishes! xo

wandering said...

Yes, isn't it lovely how some images just stay with you; sometimes only half-acknowledged, somewhere between things remembered and things dreamt or imagined.

Carolina said...

Yes! I like the picture very much! I am so glad I've learned about fritillaria on your blog :)
A few days ago, there was an entry about this plant on the UBC Botanical Garden blog, and it reminded me of you :)
(Unfortunately, this plant seems to be endangered at least in North America, if I happened to understand the article well...)
Big hugs,
Carolina

S. Etole said...

Thoroughly enjoy your artwork ...

Jill said...

beautiful images - extraordinary flower, I love Charles Rennie Mackintosh's watercolour of the fritillary too, do you know it?

Susan Scheid (Raining Acorns) said...

So beautiful. I love the way each image pours into the next to make one extraordinary whole.

Shenya de Silva said...

I really love the way you capture textures as well as colours in natures creations!
:D

Eva said...

Hello Milly,
Absolutely fabulous, especially the wasp. It looks so alive like it could fly away from the paper any moment.
Again, great stuff ;-)

Acornmoon said...

I think I have the same postcard. I share your love of old botanical illustration.

Your drawing has a timeless quality, I love it.

Hope to have a peek at your new quilt.

Lucille said...

That is such a beautiful pairing. Isn't it great when memories resurface. I saw a shed with its ceiling papered with Redoute rose prints this week and it reminded me of the loo door that my Dad papered in the same way. When I was tiny I used to stare at the unfamiliar Latin and try to spell out Mesembryanthemum criniflorum over and over.

PepperPi Pals said...

Hi there :)

I have given you The Beautiful Blog Awartd....there are no conditions of acceptance and you don't have to pass it on :)

http://pepperpi.blogspot.com/2010/06/beautiful-blog-drawings-from-nature.html

Clair :)

Dreaming Woods said...

Eileen could you kindly sent your address to me to sepiaartstudio@yahoo.com

i have some very late mail to send to you...

Delila

Susan Scheid (Raining Acorns) said...

Hi, Milly: I attended Megan's opening this last weekend and thought of you often. The opening was splendid, and it seems a number of the paintings have already sold. I hope you are well--I notice that I'm not able to get to your blog directly, so wanted to see if you are maintaining it. I don't want to miss seeing a new work from you now and then.

MILLY said...

Raining Acorns,
Thank you, I just went over and saw some photographs of the exhibition. It looks wonderful and you must have been thrilled to see it all in person. Lucky you.

Carol said...

This has a beautiful elegance.