Museum Description
The use of color in flowers can have different meanings in different cultures. Red flowers can be symbolic to love and passion. While white flowers could symbolize being peaceful and calm. Colors can cause people to have a psychological reaction, like seeing a blue flower could bring out sadness. I think the color of a flower in a painting could tell you a lot about what's going on in the painting or what is to be perceived.
Impact Statement
I want visitors of my museum to experience a sense of curiosity and appreciation for the symbolism and beauty of art. I hope they will leave with a better understanding of how colors and delicate flowers can help show us powerful emotions. A goal throughout my life is to encourage people to see the world more positively and thoughtfully, and to create an appreciation for the world around us.
Pure Petals
The delicate hues of these flowers can often be used to symbolize tranquility, purity, and innocence. Artwork featuring pale flowers often gives us a calm, peaceful feeling that could represent new beginnings. Artists often use soft tones to create a subtle nurturing atmosphere for the viewer, to allow for a moment of reflection. White flowers are commonly associated with purity and virtue, and pale pink and yellow flowers are commonly associated with being hopeful and gentile.
Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Lady Lilith, 1873
This picture fits the theme well because it shows the use of flowers to show emotions. The flowers surrounding the woman could symbolize the femineity and beauty she has. While the greenery suggests her growth and connection to nature.
William Williams, Deborah Hall, 1766
The woman reaching and touching the plant suggests the connection she had with nature and could symbolize growth. While she is in an elegant dress with perfect posture, she still choses to have these flowers in her portrait because they meant a great deal to her.
Dante Gabriel Rossetti, The Annunciation, 1850
The act of the woman giving the other woman a white flower can symbolize friendship and purity. While the woman's visual expressions add to the story, the flowers are what point us in the right direction of understanding the painting.
John William Waterhouse, Soul of the Rose, 1905
The delicate pink color can represent femininity and gentleness. The use of roses in particular is symbolic of love, passion, and beauty. The woman is deeply entranced while inhaling the fragrance of the rose, which can be a metaphor for indulging yourself in love and memories.
A Vivid Pallet
Bright and bold colored flowers in art can display different intense emotions and visuals. Bright red can symbolize danger and anger, while yellow can symbolize joy, and blue can symbolize sadness and depth. The vibrant colored flowers are not only to add appeal to the paintings but to help deepen the portrayal of the symbolic meaning of the paintings.
The Knight of the Flowers, Georges Rochegrosse, 1894
The bright red flowers can be a symbol of the knight's intense emotions and courage while traveling and facing danger. While the yellow flowers could symbolize the joy of being considered a warrior. These colorful flowers not only draw our eyes to the painting but invite viewers to look for the deeper meaning in an artwork.
Ophelia, Sir John Everett Millais, 1851-52
In the painting, Ophelia is surrounded by vivid flowers that each have a meaning. The red poppies can symbolize the tragic fate and eventual death of Ophelia. The purple lavender is associated with being faithful and modest and could be used to reflect Ophelia's character. The meaning behind the flowers leads us to ask more questions about the artwork.
The Flower Carrier, Diego Rivera, 1935
This painting depicts the struggles of being the working class through the colors of the flowers. The muted colors in contrast to the vivid flowers symbolize the hope and promise of a better life through all the hardship.
Summer Days, Georgia O'Keeffe, 1936
The poppy's red color symbolizes passion and vitality, and is in contrast to the isolated background, creating a strong visual narrative about life and resilience. The juxtaposition for life and death and vibrancy and isolation, grabs the viewer’s attention and allows for critical thinking, making it important for understanding the symbolic use of color in art.
Decay and Renewal
As flowers age and wither, they lose their vibrance and life they once had. They slowly turn into a muted color which symbolizes their inevitable decline. This transformation symbolizes reflection. The browning and drooping of the petals and stems are a metaphor for the circle of life, but despite their decay these flowers embody resilience. Dying flowers often symbolize loss, mourning, and bittersweet memories.
The Rose that Died, Vivek Mandalia, 2019
The petals on this rose have transformed from a vibrant red and green to a dull red and brown as they enter, the final stage of its life. The withering petals reflect the resilience and acceptance of life's impermanence. The use of color captures the essence of morality.
Death Nature with Shooting Gear and Flowers I, Jean Baptiste Oudry, 1715
The Juxtaposition of the lifeless bodies and the flowers surrounding them highlights life and death. The yellow and pink in the flowers are in contrast with the dark hues of the elements which emphasizes the inevitability of death.
Dead Sunflower, Michelle Dunn, 2015
The Sunflowers are losing their vividness and slowly turning brown, representing their decay. The long sturdy stems of the sunflowers symbolize strength and endurance even as they face their final days. The contrast between the once bright flowers highlights the beauty in resilience.
I want visitors to leave my museum with a deeper appreciation of art and what it symbolizes. I hope viewers realize that although beautiful, flowers hold more symbolism and meaning than just beauty. Flowers represent hope, resilience, and possibility. To reinforce this, the end of my museum would feature a space to reflect on thoughts and feelings about the artworks they've seen.