Perhaps as nature’s most delicate example of survival, the beauty of a flower is but a mask for its true purpose. Some flowers, like thistles, thrive in harsh environments, while others like orchids are temperamental and bloom rarely. Many have intentionally evolved to enchant other species to endure—such as the smallest of honeybees that sprinkle themselves in pollen, hummingbirds whose bills have evolved perfectly alongside honeysuckles, and even humans that have gone from admiring blossoms to cultivating them in grand gardens and greenhouses.
“I perhaps owe being a painter to flowers.”
Far from superficial in their necessity, flowers have always held significance to humanity. Sometimes, like the snowdrops of Galanthus nivalis, they serve simply as harbingers to spring. Victorian England famously practiced a “language of flowers”, where different arrangements signified feelings of love, friendship, grief, and mourning. In Japan, the soft and short blooms of cherry blossoms have held centuries of cultural significance for representing Mono no Aware, the appreciation of impermanence.
“When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it's your world for the moment. I want to give that world to someone else.”
Flowers, much like humanity, are fleeting in their nature. Similar to the symbiotic relationships of the natural world, flowers and artists have long shared a special bond. While flowers serve as a muse, artists act as preservationists, taking petals to paintbrush and extending their lifespan and legacy far beyond their own. Claude Monet’s most famous subject was his home garden in Giverny, France. Frida Kahlo captured her tumultuous emotions by blending botanicals with her surreal self-portraiture. The large-scale interpretations of Georgia O'Keeffe’s irises, lilies, and magnolias sought to evoke the emotional significance of her subjects for busy city dwellers who, quite literally, rarely stopped to smell the flowers.
“I paint flowers so they will not die.”
Nothing in the natural world is meant to last, from the short-lived blooms of a blossom to even the most meticulously preserved paintings; all are subjects and inevitable victims to time. Floraculture serves to shift that age-old narrative, empowered by the advent of blockchain technology. This celebration of contemporary floral artistry invites artists from around the world to collaborate in an inventive arrangement where our botanical subjects can be eternally preserved and admired as intended.
Meet our Featured Artists:
Leah is a British-Malaysian illustrator based in London and the Artist and Founder at Power of Women. Her work is bold and striking, with a focus on colour, culture and fashion. Her mission is for art to inspire and empower the next generation of women and girls.
Tom Leighton is an artist, photographer, and printmaker focused on both urban and natural architectural forms & colour manipulation.
Wildy Martinez, a fashion designer, artist, and the founder of Wildflower Fields, passionately celebrates women's diversity through her creative movement in art, fashion, and storytelling. Her focus on highlighting the beauty of Vitiligo aims to empower individuals with the condition, fostering a sense of visibility and self-acceptance within the overarching theme of the art of self-embrace.
Disha Rajani is an artist based in India and her art is a subtle and intriguing mix of femininity and the beauty of nature.
Flora Márquez is an illustrator and autobiographical comic artist from Argentina.
Su Postill is a Canadian collage artist & illustrator. Her work is inspired by fashion, life, all things vintage & her quirky imagination.
Riska, aka Holakanola, is an artist captivated by the enchanting realms of folktales, floral wonders, and the empowering essence of women, infusing her creations with magic and intricately woven patterns that define her distinctive style.
QuantumSpirit, aka Jennifer Panepinto, is a visual artist merging analog and digital techniques in captivating artworks inspired by unseen forces in our world. With over two decades of professional experience and an MFA in Design, she entered the NFT space in November 2021.
"People think I do drugs. I AM my own drug." - 404 Tearsss
Foreword by:
Tina Survilla Lindell is a sociolinguist, writer, and curator based out of New York City. Inspired by her Filipino-American upbringing abroad, much of her writing focuses on themes of identity, intimacy, and culture. As an avid urban birder and aspiring naturalist, she has been previously profiled and featured on the cover of Birding Magazine.
A celebration of contemporary floral artistry.
Curated by Jack Prettyman.