Tulip Mania

Who doesn't love tulips?  The colors of the flowers, the green speary leaves, the neatness of their petals, all combine to make a most pleasing appearance.  Tulips, third most popular flower in the world, come in 3000 varieties, some striped, some frilly, all beautiful and colorful.

Tulips have inspired many artists:  Jan Brueghel the Elder, Hans Bollongier, and the prolific Anonymous, whose painting represents the most expensive tulip sold during the "tulip mania" that struck Holland in the 1630's, at the height of which, a single bulb sold for an amount that would have "clothed and [fed] an entire Dutch family for half a lifetime" (James Grout).    

In the language of flowers, tulips represent "perfect love"; their black center is a lover's heart, "darkened by the heat of passion."  I love tulips; with peonies and ranunculus (oh, and lilacs), they are my favorite flowers.  They are extremely photogenic and lend themselves to the kind of treatment I enjoy -- here, I'm working on making them look like old botanical illustrations.  Elegant in their simplicity, they are beautiful heralds of the spring.  Stay tuned for more tulip portraits, later today.

[Note:  The picture is processed with Kim Klassen's "Chamomile," "Warmsun," and "Sweettreat2" textures.  Thanks, Kim.]