tulip history



Images via various sources
In the 18th century Istanbul was the apogee of the passion for trees, flowers, gardens and tulips in particular. Pleasure was sought in tulip gardens during day time while poetry and musical evenings took place illuminated by candles on tortoise back protected by glass shades.
A new period began in Ottoman arts with the ascendancy of illuminators, and in particular, of Levni; paintings were sent back to the capital from Paris by Mehmed Said Pasha, the Ottoman ambassador. Furniture and clothing that came from Paris began to promote Western fashions in the Ottoman capital.
A refined entertainment culture developed during the Tulip Era. The legendary Kagithane parties and the magnificent Sadabad palace deserve a mention each at this point. All this took place against a backdrop of tulips, like a symbol.
What was it that had triggered this sudden passion for tulips? Where did tulips come from? While the precise origin of tulips is not known, decorations firmly place tulips in the old world. Tulips pop up in Southern Europe, the Caucuses, Iran, and Anatolia. Wild tulips appear in figures seen on Northern Mediterranean shores, in Japan and Central Asia. 
Turks were the first to note tulips in Anatolia. As a decorative plant, the Seljuks valued tulips alongside roses, camations and daffodils. The first instance of a tulip in decoration in Anatolia dates back to the 12th century. Mevlana was the poet to refer to tulips in his poetry: "Come tulip come and take color from my cheek" the famous philosopher wrote.  More information here.

fine arts




Photographs by my photographer ;)
Museum of Fine Art, Boston 
Figure/Fabric/Fantasy
Selections from the Jean S. and Frederic A. Sharf Collection of Fashion Drawing


"Images of fashion exploded in the 20th century with the proliferation of ready-to-wear and glossy fashion magazines. As photography gradually became the medium of choice for fashion advertising, artists who worked by hand began to emphasize interpretation and impression over pure likeness. They also played up drawing’s advantages over photography. A figure’s poses and proportions, for example, could be manipulated to show off clothes to their best advantage. Skilled artists could convincingly depict the drape and texture of textiles with remarkably minimal means. Evocative details and locales could easily be incorporated into the designs, fostering the fanciful and escapist possibilities of fashion.
This show features 50 drawings by 26 artists, dating from the 1940s through the 1980s. Each section of the exhibition is organized roughly chronologically, allowing us to see how styles changed over time—not only the clothing itself, but artists’ dynamic interpretations of it. The works are selections from the Jean S. and Frederic A. Sharf Collection of fashion art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, as well as gifts from the artists themselves. The Museum now owns nearly 10,000 works of 20th-century fashion art, including the archives of preeminent Women’s Wear Daily artist Kenneth Paul Block and American couturier, Arnold Scaasi. Thanks to the Sharfs’ continued generosity and encouragement, the collection continues to grow." - for more information visit the website

If by chance you are in the Boston area, take a few hours to visit the museum, it was really a wonderful place with some great collections. 

flower shop




Images from my own collection
Flowershop at Quincy Market, Boston

"Being perfect artists and ingenuous poets, the Chinese have piously preserved the love and holy cult of flowers; one of the very rare and most ancient traditions which has survived their decadence. 
And since flowers had to be distinguished from each other, they have attributed graceful analogies to them, dreamy images, pure and passionate names which perpetuate and harmonize in our minds the sensations of gentle charm and violent intoxication with which they inspire us."
-Octave Mirbeau-