Tulips

Today a friend and I took a walk around the Olympia Capitol and its historic district to see the array of flowers in bloom.

I found these tall, stately (pun!), colorful tulips near the Capitol absolutely stunning.


I like the blend of colors and those tulips that appear marbled.

I learned that what is considered a variegated color pattern was caused from an infection called the Tulip Breaking Virus or the Mosaic Virus that was carried by the green peach aphids. While the virus produces fantastically colourful flowers, it also caused weakened plants that died slowly. Today the virus is almost eradicated from tulip growers' fields. Those Tulips affected by mosaic virus are called "Broken tulips"; they will occasionally revert to a plain or solid colouring, but still remain infected with the virus.

Origin of the name?

Although tulips are associated with Holland, commercial cultivation of the flower began in the Ottoman Empire. The tulip is a flower indigenous to a vast area encompassing parts of Africa, Asia, and Europe. The word tulip, which earlier appeared in English in forms such as tulipa or tulipant, entered the language by way of French tulipe and its obsolete form tulipan or by way of Modern Latin tulīpa, from Ottoman Turkish tülbend ("muslin" or "gauze"), and is ultimately derived from the Persian language dulband ("turban"). (The English word turban, first recorded in English in the 16th century, is a cognate.)

We have several Tulip Festivals in the state of Washington.
Here is one of my paintings after a visit to the fields.

Now Blooming on the Trail......

As spring has been progressing, I have been posting what is currently in bloom on the Chehalis Western Trail in Olympia, Washington.

You can call me the trail eye-witness reporter!

The Red Elderberry is currently the star bloomer with its lacy foliage, large white flower clusters.


The Red Elderberry is a showy large deciduous shrub or small tree of the Honeysuckle family that grows 10-20 feet tall with a broad arching form. Older specimens have large, multiple trunks with coarse bark. Red elderberry begins growth early in spring and produces abundant, small, creamy white flowers in large, conical or pyramidal shaped clusters between April and July. Large clusters of small, bright red, fleshy berries appear in summer.

This deciduous shrub is very common west of the Cascades. Large attractive clusters of red berries are very popular with the birds, but may be toxic to humans when eaten raw. When ripe however they can be cooked and made into processed products, or fermented into wine. The rest of the plant (flowers, leaves, seeds, roots) is toxic as it contains cyanide-producing glycosides.

The flowers have a rather unpleasant, skunk smell. Butterflies enjoy the nectar of the flowers, while birds will feast on the ripe berries.

Native Cherries on the Trail

Those of you who travel the Chehalis Western Trail in Olympia, Washington, might recognize this spot. If you do, and you like cherries, bring a ladder this summer and a delight awaits.

Ebony seems to get in every photo!
These blooming trees are the native cherry also known as Bitter Cherry. It is not commonly available from nurseries, garden stores and other plant dealers and distributors.

You are looking at a mature grove of who knows how many years?


General Characteristics:

The Bitter cherry (Prunus emarginata) is a native, deciduous shrub, four to twelve feet high, or sometimes a small tree up to thirty feet high. The leaves are oblong to oval, fine toothed, and rounded at the tip. The flowers are fragrant, blooming between April and May, in clusters of five to twelve. The bark has a generally smooth dark brown surface marked by horizontal light gray interrupted hands and by rows of oblong orange colored lenticels.

Interesting Facts:

Several native North American tribes used bitter cherry to treat a variety of complaints. An infusion of the bark was used in the treatment of tuberculosis. A decoction of the root and inner bark was taken daily as a treatment for heart troubles. An infusion of the bark, combined with crab apple, was used as a cure all tonics in treating colds and various other ailments. An infusion of this species’ rotten wood was used as a contraceptive.

Stunning Purplish-Pink Trillium

Even though I was only equipped with my phone camera, I could not resist recording this beautiful specimen I found today on the Chehalis Western Trail, my favorite walking path.


Purple-Pink Trillium

This photograph does not reflect the exact color, but the color here is rather striking too, wouldn't you agree?

Now, the next question is was this Trillium first white and then turned purple? Or is this one of those purple Trillium?

Vincent and Gauguin

Artists Vincent Van Gogh and Paul Gauguin spent time together and painted.

Would you have liked to be a fly on the wall in the studio?


Portrait of Van Gogh Painting Sunflowers
Paul Gauguin
December 1888

The portrait honors the bond of friendship between the two artists, although they never saw each other again after Gauguin's departure that winter. It is noted that their discussions about art would become debates, and then hostile arguments. By the end of the winter their friendship had become frayed.

Vincent portrayed his life with Gauguin in Arles in these paintings of chairs:


Vincent's Chair with his Pipe
Vincent Van Gogh
December 1888


Gauguin's Chair
Vincent Van Gogh
November 1888

The two paintings of Vincent's and Paul Gauguin's chairs are among the most often analyzed of Van Gogh's works. These companion paintings have attracted much attention because of the symbolic interpretations underlying the subject matter. Van Gogh himself discussed these works in a number of his letters, but didn't include any detailed interpretations of the underlying meaning of the paintings.

Gauguin and Friends

Recently I have been reading Robert Goldwater's book Gauguin to my art therapy client as she is not able to paint.

The color plates and descriptions are exceptional. We are learning about the personal side of Gauguin and his challenges with life as well as fellow artists.

Can you imagine hanging out with Monet, Van Gogh, Pissarro and Cezanne? Not only did they have personality clashes, but shared painting techniques. I noticed some of Gauguin's painting techniques resemble Van Gogh's without the heavy applications of paint.

In Gauguin's Intimate Journals, he says, "The Impressionists study color exclusively, but without freedom, always shackled by the need of probability. For them the ideal landscape, created from many entities does not exist.......They heed only the eye, and neglect the mysterious centers of thought, so falling into merely scientific reasoning."

One of my favorite paintings:


Still Life With Three Puppies
Paul Gauguin
1888

Gauguin wrote about the time this picture was painted, "I have sacrificed everything - execution and color - for style, wishing to impose upon myself something else than what I [already] know how to do." This painting is filled with the most brilliant color, but it is color determined by a conception so original, and in many ways so much ahead of its time that one understands how Gauguin could feel that he was forcing himself toward a style he had not previously imagined, subordinating all else in the effort.

I can relate to feeling like a sacrifice to try something new in the realm of art, but excitingly so. I seem to be in that place and time.

Trillium Obsession

I have been posting photos and information on the first blooming wildflower of spring, the Trillium.

As I promised, here is a watercolor painting I created from my photographs. This one is more realistic, but I plan to do variations with less detail and more color.

Stay tuned...........