Honesty Flowers

Back in the early 1990s I lived in Amsterdam, (yes, I’m that old), and was friends with a very skilled and talented painter called Theo Wittering. He doesn’t have much of an online presence now, but back then his work was regularly bought by major collections.

I visited his atelier many times, and was always struck by the power of some of his darker pieces. There was one painting specifically which was very striking indeed, featuring a dramatic skull and other moody imagery. It was great to see it gradually evolve on subsequent visits, until one day, I came to visit to find it replaced with a painting of peony roses …

I asked him what had happened to the skull painting. He pointed at the roses and said, “Oh I painted over it. I prefer the roses.” I was taken aback. Roses? Really? Where is the excitement in that?

And then I looked again, and realised that the peonies were gorgeous. A wonderful, classical painting executed with heart and skill. And I realised I admired Theo for his basic honesty as an artist. He didn’t feel the need to pander to “edgy” fads or be in fashion. He just painted with integrity, and if that meant roses then so be it.

That was about 25 years ago, but I still think about that encounter frequently, because I have realised I absolutely LOVE flower photography, both as a photographer and as a viewer, and I think it suits me. Something in my style seems to just click when I photograph flowers. There’s an entire world of mystery to be found between and underneath the petals, and I love showing it with my phots.

 

So now, whenever I wonder if people will dismiss the work as “just flowers” I think to to myself: they are “Honesty Flowers”.  And I realise that I should disregard any fear of what others might think of my work, and just be honest about what I like and enjoy. Sometimes that is flowers, but it also applies to any other subject that I feel is worthy of exploration.

So, here’s a set of honesty flowers. Do let me know what you think, but I will keep photographing them regardless 😉

 

ADDENDUM:

Since writing this I’ve stumbled across the excellent work of Gabriel Dean Roberts, who writes about his experience photographing flowers (including Peonies!) and selling his work as NFTs. Go read his blog .