the flowering of art: flower paintings or the flower as seen by the artist
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Representation of the flower in paintings go back a long way - to the Minoan period (1580 BC). Excavations of villas in ancient Crete (Greece) revelead wall paintings, wood panels and pottery adorned with floral elements, motifs and designs. The flower? The lily.
In tribute to the flower, a universal and timeless symbol of beauty, I have put together below some of the most stunning and exquisite images of the flower captured on canvas by great artists.
still life with a basket of flowers (1617)
by jan brueghle the younger
The appeal and power of this painting are seen in the composition's simplicity of the depiction of the flowers in the basket and those that over-spilled on the grey stone ledge. Highlighting the subject is the near black background.
irises (1701)
by ogata korin
This is probably the Japanese painter's most famous work - irises painted on a panel of screens that are uncluttered and rendered with simplie lines but sophisticated color.
morning glories (1840s)
by suzuki kiitsu
This highly decorative scroll painting belongs in the Japanese Rimpa school of art. Though the overall rendering appears formalized, the stylized characteristics are seen in the use of distinct outlines and strong primary colors.
white roses (1875)
by henri fantin-latour
Fantin-Latour's expertise is evidently seen in the delicateness of the flowers rendered with an almost shimmering use of color which does not take anything away from the painting's almost photographic realism.
a nocturne (1885)
by john la farge
This American artist's work typifies the influence of Japanese artistic principles during the period - evoking an almost poetic mood in the rendering of color and design.
carnation, lily, lily, rose (1885/1886)
by John Singer Sargent
This painting paved the way for Sargent to become a popular portraitist among the moneyed and famous art patrons in both Britain and America.
almond blossoms (1890)
by vincent van gogh
This delicate and almost shimmering painting was painted by the artist in Saint-Remy, France as gift to his brother Theo and his wife Johanna for the birth of their son also named Vincent.
water lilies (1895)
by claude monet
This is one of the many paintings done by the artist of the lily pond in his garden in a village near Paris, France called Giverny. This one panel among several is made unforgettable by the quality of the lilies that seem to dissolve into the water.
compton (1896)
by William Morris
Painter and poet Morris is famous for his detailed and decoratove paintings like this which recalls medieval illuminated manuscripts. It is velieved that the artist's approach inspired the arts and crafts movements and was precursor to the art nouveau.
pansies on a table (1903)
by henri matisse
This painting is proof of the artist metamorphosis to a more sensual approach to painting achieved through distorted brush strokes and use of brilliant color. This work belongs in the artist's Nice period.
black iris (1926)
by georgia o'keefe
This painting is one of the many giant-sized paintings by the artists which were bounded by their purity, boldness and clear composition often achieved using bright colors.
coquilles-fleurs (1929)
by max ernst
This painting features the technique developed by the artist called grattage, a means of reproducing the frottage effect by applying layers of colored paint to a strong background which will then reveal new colors when scraped with a knife. He often used this technique to provide texture.
still life, tulips (1930)
by emil nolde
This watercolor exemplifies the Die Brucke expressionist painter's tendency of brilliant colors.
flower seller (1942)
by diego rivera
This easel painting of a seller of calla lilies is said to have been painted by the Mexican painter in Xochimiico for the National Palace in Mexico City. Typical of the painter's work during the period, this painting is simple in design but bold in execution.
ten-foot flowers (1967)
by andy warhol
This is one of the pop artist's late works that focused on common objects and inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's 15th century painting called Christ and his Apostles at the Last Supper.
flor dali (1969)
by salvador dali
This is one of the artis's illustrated floral botanicals inspired by those drawn from 17th to the 19th centuries. This is actually a photolithography engraved and colored with the artist's own designs and embellishments.
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Comments
This hub is beautiful, but Im not surprised. All of your art hubs are beautiful! My favorite artist of all-time is Monet, but I also enjoy everything I've ever seen by Dali. He has such a fascinating way of portraying things.
the irises and morning glories where quite lovely
Elena
i'm thinking chocolates! LOL it must be the season :D
thanks for dropping by :D
Hey Ardie
So you're into Monet? all that shimmering color - pleasant to the eyes! Dali had quite an imagination which makes his art interesting and weird but nice. Nice-weird! :D
Poetry68 - thanks for dropping a line :D
Loved the Irises and of course this hub! More power!
That black iris is stunning, but I prefer the Monet. Thanks Cris
Very Nice Chris A. My favorite are the Tulips, but all are very beautiful.
Hi Cris
You have one of my all time favourites here: Carnation, Lily, Lily Rose. I adore Singer Sargent and his painterly approach. I'm also very fond of the Diego Rivera and the Henri Fantin-Latour. Fantin-Latour turned out works of near photographic quality which I usually find annoying, but he captured more than just a true image, he put something of the character of the flowers in there too. You almost expect to smell their scent!
I love the Dali painting... I have not seen this before! Thanks for sharing...
I can now say with confidence my favorite artist is Salvador Dali. See how far I've come along?
buddy
Thanks for dropping a line, anything with flowers is beautiful indeed :D
laringo
thanks for appreciating. yes the tulips are quite a sight! :D
Amanda
you are right about Fantin-Latour - he did more than just creating a photocopy - you can almost feel his delicate touch. and he definitely loved flowers. I do think this is the most pleasant smelling hub in all of HubPages! LOL
Catherine
This painting is not as popular as his other masterpieces. :D
C.!
I just knew you'd like the black iris (wink) but monet's is right up your alley - or near to it! :D
Toady
very far indeed. now we'll work on interpersonal relations skills and you're all set for the presidency! :D
You knew what I was thinking too, but I bit my tongue! It is very sensual, huh?
C.!
of course I knew what you were thinking, can't fool me no more! :D
Toady
I'll head on over there to check out what i might be missing... it seems i'm needed? LOL
I went there and no Cris
Cris - such a beautiful collection - I'm old fashioned when it comes to paintings - landscapes and flowers are my special favourites - love the Monet and the Sargent!
C.
Sorry kinda slow today, stayed up late for the Australian Open!
Shalina
I just knew you'd like this one. thanks for dropping by :D
Loved this one, Cris
Wasn't the Nadal-Verdasco match the absolutest?!!
Shalini
Don't get me started! I'm big on tennis - Vamos Rafa!
Those are some great paintings. I especially liked "carnation, lily, lily, rose"Â then "water lilies" and also this one "flor dali". Thumbs up for a very very beautiful hub.
Ahhh - but if it hadn't been for that double fault, we'd have been singing 'Fernando' - he was something!!
countrywomen - thanks for making it a point to visit my hubs :D
Shalini
Are you saying we'd be sitting on the opposite sides of the fence tomorrow (Sunday)? if that's the case this could be the beginning of the ending of a very good hubbing friendship LOL
When you APPOINT this hub then I make it a POINT not to DISAPPOINT you...LOL
countrywomen
i see your point! LOL :D
I was just playing with words. Honestly I do like your hubs and visit them for their entertaining ability (and not because I have to visit your hubs).
Cris - haha - Rafa anyday! But - you must admit, Fernando was a worthy opponent - it really should have been the final not the semis! I watched him playing Blake and Tsonga - oboy - he's good - he even made Rafa run - now that takes some doing -guess they've played long enough together!
Shalini
That's good to hear! Vamos!
Yep I agree with you, I've seen most of the matches between him and Rafa - almost always a thrashing. But when I saw him beat Murray and Tsonga he really did improve and a lot! but a i guess the play did not make the difference but the champion's heart (sorry can't help it) LOL
Breathtakingly beautiful and heart-warming, I wish I were an earthworm tending all these flowers! (LOL) Diego Rivera's flower seller brings me to the calla lilies of Baguio.Each painting tells me that life is beautiful despite the global financial crisis. How nice of you, Cris, to come up with something that spreads hope for every new hub you publish. Thank you for these soothing and edifying gallery.
hi francia
What can I say? You're always so poetic you made a stanza out of the simple phrase "nice hub" LOL
I like calla lilies, so eloquent. though i don't remember seeing them in Baguio the last time I was there (i went for broke in the ukays! LOL)
ah you are so right... if we would only stop and smell the flowers :D thanks for dropping by, it's a pleasure to please you :D
Cris, you never cease to amaze me! What a stunning collection! BRAVO!
countrywomen - that's nice to hear! thanks :D
Jama - i could go on and on amazing you - the pleasure is all mine. thanks for dropping a line :D
Now you've done it. You've made a beautiful hub of paintings that are all so beautiful that i can't even pick one or two of my favorites. But if you insisted that i do, then I'd have to say that the lily one with the two children touches me and makes me want to just sit and bask in it for a good long while. The basket of flowers looks so real I could swear it's a photograph. That one is particularly lovely too. :)
As usual, you are masterful at picking out the cream of the crop, and I enjoyed your art show. :) Wonderful job!
Pam
you never run out of nice things to say and i'm thankful for that. glad you enjoyed this, too - another dose of art and God knows we need the inspiration! Thanks for dropping by :D
Your hub worth a big appreciation.. TRuly wondering job you did.. Thanks for sharing :)
Clara, thanks for the kinds words :D
It made me try one flower painting :D Such a B'ful hub.. catch my 5 stars on your way... And I need to bookmark it to do some trial and testing with flowers' paintings.. I may pop up with some weird but honest efforts on some hub soon.. :p
Thank you for sharing this
Yayyyy Force Rafa - what a guy!!!
chillingbreeze,
Caught the 5 stars! LOL thanks. It's nice to know that you paint - it's one frustration of mine! Anyway, please do share some of your work in HubPages for the rest to enjoy! Thanks for dropping by :D
Shalini
LOL i enjoyed the match - though the 5th set set was quite a downer! but a win is win! :D
It was wasn't it? He seemed to just give up - but a great match all the same!
I guess there lies the big difference between the twio, Rafa never seems to give up even when losing bigtime. Oh well there's 3 more Slams left, or rather two - we know who will win the French - barring injuries! :D
Some beautiful images here. While I've always enjoyed looking at flower art, it's never been something I've ever wished to own, you know? But the Almond Blossoms by Van Gogh comes close.
That or you just haven't found something to suit your taste or compliment your place's design. But you'll know when you see one.
Yes Van Gogh's work here is a beauty. Though it initially appears different from his other works. :D
You're right. I can see perhaps a painting of a flowering food plant in my kitchen, maybe.
Why not? It would definitely bring color and warm ambiance :D
Maybe... Possibly, conceivably, mayhap, perchance.
LOL perchance is so old! or conceivably, feasibly, imaginably :D
Ya... those! My thesaurus sucks! I think "mayhap" is older.
Simply irresistable, I loved them all and was familiar with a few of them.
Great hub, Cris
Thanks Katy. Glad you dropped by :D
Great compilation of diverse images. I'm especially glad that you included some lesser known, along with the well-known. The 'usual' images presented in an elementary art history class always seem to neglect those outside of western culture.
Your approach of taking one subject through different eras and cultures was an excellent idea!
Rochelle
Glad to see you finally made it here. Thanks for dropping by and the kind words you left. :D
Absolutely stunning! I am a huge fan of Diego Rivera. The Nocturne, and the Still Life, Tulips are breath-taking, also. You have captured some really exquisite pieces. Nothing more soul eliciting than flowers. thank you for sharing them.
Glad you liked this. And thanks for the kind words. I like Rivera's work too as well as Frida Kahlo's. :D
almond blossoms (1890)by vincent van gogh
Happens to be one of my all time favorites. Cris you know your art. Thanks for this wonderful contribution to hubpages!
Actually it's a three-way tie. His irises, the sunflowers, and the almond blossoms. had to drop the irises.
I should, it took me four years and then some to be able to master differentiating good from run of the mill art :D
For me, if the portrait speaks to me, I tend to buy it.
good for you. at least you know what you want. :D
..wow! a flowericious hub, very nice! flowers are indeed one of the best arts ever..thank you for sharing Sir.. :)
pinkhawk
flowericious? lemme get a dictionary! lol thanks for reading, glad you enjoyed the images.
great artwork.. LOVE'm :-)
Great hub!!~ Love Art!!~ Thank you sooo much for sharing!! :)
@nikki - Thanks!
@sheryl - and thank you so much for visiting :D
some absolutely beautiful artwork there, i like the water lillies. Amazing collection, a most enjoyable read
I know, they are a feast for the eyes. Thanks for checking these babies out :D
love this ; I paint flowers so lots of ideas here . thanks.
good for you. maybe you should post some of your work :D
Elena. says:
10 months ago
Wonderful, Cris! I'm still hooked on the kisses and here you go with the flowers! You planning a date or something? :-) What's next, wine? Laugh!
Silliness aside, I thank you for the visual stimulation and the minutes of joy!