The Origin of the Species

THE ORIGIN OF THE SPECIES is the name of my up and coming exhibition.

The paintings are of large single blooms set against a background that tells you something about the plant's origins. eg the picture I'm about to post is called IRIS. The background has four separate references to the history of the iris.

1. The fleur de lys was an ancient symbol for the iris, which had religious and magical signifigence for the Romans.

2. I couldn't resist the temptation to include Van Gogh's IRISES, without doubt the most famous iris painting.

3. The main background is taken from a 19th century Japanese wood block engraving. The iris motif was very popular in the IMAGES OF THE FLOATING WORLD engravings of the period. 

4. I've included an early herbal as the iris species was often featured in herbals and botanical manuscripts. 

As a picture is worth a thousand words I'll now treat you to the picture itself!

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