European Influence

In the 17th and 18th century, or the Baroque period, floral designs were massed and over-flowing.  In paintings, the designs would show each of the flowers facing outwards in a symmetrical shape.  Containers would range from ceramic jugs to Oriental porcelain vases.

In this design, I used lilies, iris', dahlias, alstromeria, 3 roses and a sunflower.  In the 18th centuries, the designers weren't able to be as picky with their flowers as we can be.  They used everything, including the stems with extra leaves, as filler.  The challenging part of this design for me was to not clean up the flowers and take off the broken and dying flowers.  I also stayed away from manipulating the steel grass to give it a more organic feel.  I am very pleased with this design and the best part is, I can come up with it any time I want with the flowers in my garden!