Every time I say, White Wedding, my brain instantly thinks of Billy Idol's iconic song, "White Wedding". I just cannot help it. Anyways, that is besides the point.
White flowers have always had a timeless elegance and beauty to them. Take the white rose for instance. They symbolize purity, remembrance, and new beginnings where white daisies represent innocence and cheerfulness, and gardenia’s symbolize love and purity. Hence, why so many brides continue to use white blooms for their wedding bouquets; they offer so much love and symbolism.
“White Wedding” was commissioned in 2023. It also happened to be one of the first pieces we chose a black background for, which of course highlighted the white flowers in a profound way. One of my favorite things about this piece are the roses, and how the details of the overlapping petals pop out making the image look 3D as well as the clarity of the centers.
When we first started to press white flowers, it was a complete nightmare. More often than not, the blooms would brown, or they were already a little brown on the edges when we would receive them. They just seem to be so susceptible to damage, compared to other colorful flowers. We would try new techniques by dying off the blooms a bit more to actually thin out the petals without breaking them, different ways to reduce the center from browning, different materials to absorb moisture, etc. In the end, it was a combination of many little tweaks that allowed us to perfect a picture-perfect pressed white rose, but to this date, it does not always happen. Many flowers of any color do not come out in this perfect fashion, and that is OK. It is good to showcase the imperfect blooms as they hold so much beauty as well, and is more depictive of our own lives. Nothing is perfect after all.
Thank you for reading everyone.
~Keith
