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by Vanessa Conte
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Female artists and floral imagery began their strongest association in the Victorian Age, when natural science became a popular curiosity and trickled into social conversations. Women of this period began making small careers out of gardening and botanical illustration, but only recently have they been identified as part of Western art history. This month's exhibition focuses on female artists who have further investigated the significance of botanical imagery, imbuing this ageless subject with contemporary themes.
Featuring work by Eleni Traganas, Yolanda Shashaty and Deborah Sudran.
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Eleni Traganas
Eleni Traganas works in the tradition of naturalism, using realistic floral and animal images to convey messages about the mortality of life. For Blighted Spot she writes, "Here, a sinister conflict of interaction sets the mood of the scene--the microcosm of cause and effect, tension and irresolution." Ripe vegetables are juxtaposed with decaying leaves; a newborn butterfly flutters over a snake that lurks before his prey. The inevitable cycle of life is staged in this dramatic narrative. |
Blighted Spot (1996)
Eleni Traganas |
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Traganas also portrays a more optimistic flipside to the harsh realities illustrated in her metaphorical paintings. In one of her works, lilies, peonies and lush green leaves are flawlessly rendered to lure the viewer into an idyllic world beyond. Candidly titling this piece Afterlife, the artist visualizes a fantasy of forever blooming beauty while subtly hinting at death. "It could have been a vision of another life, a foretaste of life after life." |
Afterlife (1985)
Eleni Traganas |
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Although the philosophy presented in Traganas' work is typical of the scientific naturalism popular in late Victorian England, its objective messages still hold true in contemporary life.
Sign the guestbook of Eleni Traganas. |
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Yolanda Shashaty
Yolanda Shashaty incorporates botanical drawing into her still life and landscape paintings. Snaking vines and curled leaves reach outward from the plants, usually placed in the center of her compositions. Cyclamen was inspired by a Celtic drawing and emphasizes symmetry. The plant itself, shown roots and all, is flayed like a specimen, dividing the canvas equally into triangular shapes pointing inward. The presentation of the cyclamen is symbolic of nature's perfection, and emblematic of the romantic interest that was taken in plant life by artists and scientists alike during the 19th century.
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Cyclamen (1999)
Yolanda Shashaty |
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The shapes of the plants are what Shashaty emphasizes in her uncomplicated compositions. In order to make form the focus, the artist includes little else to distract the viewer from her floral subject. Yellow Hydrangea celebrates the hydrangea blossom by silhouetting a single full blossom and strong stem that emerges from the shadowed base of the painting. The flower is pictured with no imperfections, just as the botanical illustrations of the Victorian Age would never feature a rotted berry or a wilted leaf.
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Yellow Hydrangea (1999)
Yolanda Shashaty |
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Shashaty's works are successful in evoking the contemplation of nature as fantastically perfect, so much so that it seems alien. Unlike Traganas' illustrations of reality, Shashaty proposes a grander, undying image that depicts nature as a miraculous mystery.
Sign the guestbook of Yolanda Shashaty. |
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Deborah Sudran
Closest to the organic studies created by 19th-century botanical enthusiasts are the paintings of Deborah Sudran, who works directly from life to portray an honest image of tropical foliages. The artist's complementary palette of dark and bright hues is the perfect combination to give these exotic succulents their deserved appreciation.
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Barrel Cactus and Succulents, 1 (1997)
Deborah Sudran |
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Sudran paints directly from life in order to capture the absolute likenesses of proteas, aloes and cacti. By keeping the backgrounds of her paintings so sparse, the artist draws our attention to the elaborate engineering of these plants. "The intricate shapes within the line of pineapple plants contrast with a simple background of green and ochre. My paintings express…my fascination with [nature's] varied patterns and colors."
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Pineapple Plants (1999)
Deborah Sudran |
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Like Shashaty, Sudran is enthralled by nature's perfection, so evident in the wild beauty of the organic world.
Sign the guestbook of Deborah Sudran.
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