Perceptivity Concerning Flowers
Influence of My Mother
As long as I can remember my mother loved flowers. My earliest recollection of my mother's involvement with flowers was her arranging the flowers for church services. Her love for flowers and worship of the Lord were so intermingled that they were almost synonymous. The ability to be absorbed in the beauty of flowers came naturally to my mother and was her way of connecting with God. She communed with the Lord through flowers as her mind focused on each precious plant that she was nourishing. She spent hours in her garden and her plants would grow strong and blossom under her loving touch. The beauty of flowers touched her heart deeply and gave her quietude of mind. She saw flowers as the vibrant art of the Supreme Creator.
My mother served as a shining example of how to connect with the innate essence that exist in the beauty of flowers, and because of her influence I understand the importance flowers have in my life. Because of her influence I developed at an early age a love for flowers and nature that goes beyond mere enjoyment and appreciation, a love that connects with the Divine. Her legacy of love for flowers lives on in my brother and myself. Not only do we love flowers but also flowers connect us in some mysterious way with our mothers spirit and her love. I did this series of flower prints toward the end of her life as a way of giving homage to my mother and to the Supreme Consciousness that exists in the form of flowers.
Inspiration From Nature
Both of my parents loved nature. We had a cabin in Superior National Forest, so I was exposed to the wilderness early in life. I remember picking a small delicate flower and felt so much love flooding my heart that I was inspired to paint an image of it. Maybe I wanted to capture the love I felt or simply honor it. At the time I had not understood the depth of the experience. Much later in life I understood the significance of this experience. I had a momentary awakening of the Divine Love in my heart. As for the painting, being an early attempt, the image wasn't kept, however, the feeling that I experienced remains to this day.
Flowers continued to inspire me, and thus the flower prints were created. I knew that flowers had symbolic meaning from my studies of art history. Thus, the lily signified purity for medieval European artists. In India, the lotus is symbolic of rebirth, and is also associated with the Goddess. On one of my trips to India I purchased the booklet Flowers: their spiritual significance printed by the Aurobindo Society. Spiritual meaning for many specific flowers were listed, but the booklet proved especially helpful in sparking an interest in the spiritual significance of flowers in terms of form, color, and arrangement. The myriad of form and color reflects the beauty and order of the Creator. Each color has its wavelength thus emitting energy. The form of the flower corresponding to a basic geometric shape has its own vibrational energy field. Intuitively I feel this is true, but I don't know of any scientific studies on the energy field of the shapes of flowers. However, my interest is in the intuitive and symbolic meanings of flowers and their association with spiritual realities. My own meaning of flowers is alluded to in the titles of the artwork.
Relationship with Flowers
Flowers teach in a simple and open fashion. They give unconditionally and generously. We need only to discover their message. To know what they have to tell us, we must be highly in tune with our own essential nature. Our sensibilities must be well developed. Some extremely sensitive and intuitive persons feel the flowers' innate vibrations and commune with them. I suspect flowers speak sweetly and softly. Personally, I can't hear them but I definitely feel their essence and connect with them on many levels. As a child I saw harmony and order in their beauty and I knew that the One that created them must be indeed supremely great. This childlike simplicity of awe for nature served me well until I had my spiritual awakening much later in life.
What is this spiritual awakening? For now, I' ll just say that I was awakened to the creative energy of life and that I experienced its powerful benevolent force within the core of my being. Since then my relationship with nature has greatly changed. I always saw and enjoyed the beauty of nature, but now I feel a steady connection and oneness with nature because the awakened energy that I feel is the same power that is the foundation of the universe. The more I become aware and in tune with my own spiritual energy, the more I feel connected with flowers and nature in general. As a result, my life is enriched and my enjoyment of nature enhanced. Consequently, I try to remember to give thanks for the many gifts that flowers offer – the varied form, color, and fragrance. The delicious and beneficial fruits as the result of flowering serve as a constant reminder of nature's bounty.
Flowers as Messengers of Good Will
Flowers carry unique messages, each according to their form, color, fragrance, and arrangement. As an artist, I'm aware of how shape, color, texture and other visual elements of the language of art speak to us. Most of us respond in some manner to the visual arts. However, I feel that nature possesses a greater significance than what the eyes see. The subtle vibrations inherent in flowers affect us deeply. Do we not have a favorite flower? Have we ever asked ourselves why? The subtle and intuitive preference for certain flowers may be due to how these flowers resonates with different centers of energy within us. Different centers of energy affect our feelings, so why not also our preferences?
Not only do flowers carry their own messages but they also have the ability to carry ours. If that were not the case, why do we send flowers or fruits to those in ill health? Is it not to send our best wishes for a speedy recovery? We give flowers at birthdays and anniversaries to remember the important moments of ones we love. At weddings, flowers celebrate and acknowledge the love between two persons. When someone passes away, the flowers we send are in recognition of the person's life and accomplishments. We send flowers out of gratitude and to give thanks. In all of these cases, flowers carry our best wishes and blessings as well as their own subtle messages.
Flowers are also used for giving honor. In certain countries, people are garlanded as a way of showing respect to them. And from ancient times, flowers have always been a way to show de's chosen deity. There, the priest officiates on behalf of the people by saying prayers and asking for blessings. The flowers and other items used during the recitation of the prayers are given back to the people because they carry the blessings from the Lord.
I had a direct experience that flowers do carry the power and grace of God. I helped host a program introducing meditation and yoga. The flowers at the program were going to be used at another program the next day. So, I brought the flowers home with me. Wanting to keep them fresh I kept them in a screened-in-porch. But after hearing the weather report I decided to bring them indoors so they would not be damaged by frost. Placing them on the dining room table, I sat down to relish their beauty. Suddenly, I felt a wave of energy flooding the room, and this energy was emanating from the flowers. The experience was as palpable as a gentle freeze. I understood exactly what I experienced. During the program we chanted and meditated; the flowers had absorbed the energy of the chant and from the collective meditation. In addition, the blessings of our meditation teacher were apparent as we experienced our own divinity during the program. As the result, the flowers acted as a vehicle carrying her blessings and grace, as well as absorbing the meditative and chanting energy during the program. Being the recipient of this accumulative energy I felt very blessed that the power of God graced my home and myself.
Symbolism of Flowers
Flowers act like reflections of God, hinting at the immense beauty of the Lord. Besides, possessing more than just beauty, flowers have symbolic meanings associated with their innate vibrations. The symbolic relationship we have with flowers exists on many levels; some were discussed earlier. The cosmic significance and beauty of flowers exist regardless whether we acknowledge them. However, attaching meaningful symbols to flowers enhances and enriches our life by giving wholeness to our existence. And seeing relationships in the universe helps us feel the connection that exists in all life.
How we view something as symbolic depends much on our personal and cultural experiences. When a culture attaches the same understanding to a symbol, such as the cross for the crucifixion of Christ, that symbol has potency. If one person considers the cross as a junction on a path, its meaning has significance for that individual, but may have little impact on the culture as a whole. Symbols and myths enrich our existence and serve to give insight into the many mysteries of life through their visual and verbal form.
Response and Intuition of the Viewer
Art naturally gives visual form to objects, substantiates ideas, conveys concepts, and evokes emotions and feelings. Through implied meaning, symbols serve a similar purpose. Here, we are considering flowers as the subject matter of the artwork. The two-dimensional flowers do not carry the same vibrational energy as the living flowers; nevertheless, energy still exist because the artist and the spectator infuse the artwork with their own energetic power of understanding, appreciation, and imagination. As conveyed objects flowers have an inherent beauty that delights and imparts observational information to the viewer. The viewer in return, gives to the subject of the artwork, in this case – flowers – his/her own subjective response and connects with the artwork by being tuned in to the vibrations of his/her own heart. Every artwork creates an emotional response in the viewer. The degree of emotional feelings that is aroused depends on the viewer. Some people are highly tuned in to their feelings and are extremely sensitive emotionally. These people derive much from their experience of art. Of course, the subject matter is very important. Some people resonate more to certain subjects and forms. Consequently, the artwork in this series will resonate with those who appreciate flowers and connect with them on an emotional level as well. I sincerely hope that my love for flowers is felt and coincides with yours, giving a heightened experience of enjoyment and deepening recognition of our oneness of spirit.
Vera Vandendries © [2005]. Unless otherwise noted, all of the content on art-and-beyond web site, including, but not limited to text, images, pictorial works, trademarks and logos, is owned by Vera Vandendries. No content on this web site may be reproduced in any matter whatsoever without the prior written consent of the owner.