Garden Party by Leslie Phelan in Vancouver

“Seeing beauty in a flower could awaken humans, however briefly, to the beauty that is an essential part of their innermost being, their true nature. The first recognition of beauty was one of the significant events in the evolution of human consciousness. The feelings of joy and love are intrinsically connected to that recognition. Without our fully realizing it, flowers would become for us an expression in form of that which is most high, most sacred, and ultimately formless within ourselves. Flowers, more fleeting, more ethereal, and more delicate than the plants out of which they emerged, would become like messengers from another realm, like a bridge between the world of physical forms and the formless. They not only had a scent that was delicate and pleasing to humans, but also brought a fragrance from the realm of spirit. Using the word ‘enlightenment’ in a wider sense than the conventionally accepted one, we could look upon flowers as the enlightenment of plants.” ~Eckart Tolle from A New Earth. This series is an exploration of flowers and how people interact with them; whether freshly cut, nicely potted, growing wild or in flower beds, the jewels of the plant kingdom can be found anyplace there is abundance. Abundance of rich soil, abundance of water and eyes which can see beauty. The value they bring to our lives and the spaces in which we spend it, is worth so much more than the sum of their blooms. The FLEUR MAJEUR series. Acrylic on gallery canvas, 16" x 16", 2021 Included: 24k gold leaf floating frame.