Born today Fantin-Latour
Flowers are what he’s noted for.
He paints them with such bright profusion
They fool our senses with illusion.
“Fantin-Latour painted roses more than any other flower, but he also painted an enormous variety of old-fashioned cottage garden flowers, such as petunias, hollyhocks, tulips, dahlias, larkspur, forget-me-nots, peonies, sweet peas, hyacinths and cherry blossoms. He favored whites, yellows and pinks because he loved the luminosity of the pastel flowers. He had a deft hand with arranging flowers in a balanced yet naturalistic way, and the paintings, with the flowers silhouetted against a subdued background, have an enveloping atmosphere. They have a musical quality—a harmony of value, color and tone—that creates contrast and depth. Fantin-Latour also beautifully captures the contrasting surfaces of the vases, whether Chinese porcelain, enamel or clear glass.” [Christine Cariati]
Beautiful post. These flowers in winter, spring in my heart....
Thanks, WG. It's the time of year I thumb through books on annuals and perennials and let the photographs cheer me up.
Yes, it's summer in the seed catalogs, too.