The romantic essence of flowers probably originated from the literal beauty of the floral form. However, the ephemeral nature of a flower’s short blossom period is an apt allegory to the natures of love – fleeting, colourful, cultivatable, sometimes expensive, and definitely always in high demand. Over the centuries, there have been different attempts to capture flowers as much as possible in the apex of their blossoms, but how effective are they?
Love blooms in Lladró and Committee’s Love II.
DRYING
The origin of dried flowers goes all the way back to Ancient Egypt, mostly wreaths used in burial rites, religious ceremonies and other rites, or garlands to decorate spaces. There are also many variations of techniques used, from the older methods of air-drying, drying in sand, and flower pressing, to modern applications such as using silica gel and freeze drying. However, these methods extend flowers’ life only by 1-3 years and the flowers end up being brittle, prone to fading and humidity damage, and not lifelike.
Lladró’s Nightbloom Pendant Lamps give a magical glow as if they are in that rare moment of full blossom.
PRESERVING
People have also been soaking flowers in glycerine which preserves flowers brighter and more supple. Furthermore, one can encase dried flowers in epoxy resin, an airtight glass press or vacuum frame to increase their lifespan. People also infuse flowers with artificial dye to maintain colour intensity for longer. These techniques preserve flowers’ colour for several more years than standard methods, but UV exposure still accelerates the denaturing of pigments.
Each Lladró porcelain petal, stigma and stamen is individually handcrafted and put together to form a whole flower.
CREATING
Origami flowers and artificial fabric flowers may be the answer to some, but the Lladró brothers’s obsession with porcelain and flowers led them to start making individually handcrafted flowers since the 1950s. Porcelain was a tricky medium to deal with, but it makes the finished product non-porous, translucent, and colourfast even against UV damage. Artisans creating petals and flowers one by one also makes each bloom naturally unique. Lladró’s flower pieces continue to prove to be timeless and beloved by people of all generations.
Delicate petals of the lotus bloom provides a gentle serenity in contrast to the moving kois and seaweed under the water, in Lladró‘s Koi Fish Sculpture, Limited Edition.
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