CURVING LINES and MORE THAN TWO VASES

This morning we walked along the clifftops and below are some of the flowers that caught my eye. I showed a picture of this blue flowering vine on the 9th October. Here it is much clearer that the flower is blue. Also I have never noticed it growing so densely before. I think this 'bush' has been pruned by the  wind.

The white flowers here are of the 'woolly tea-tree' (Leptospernum lanigerum), which grow extensively in the clifftop heaths.

My attention was also caught by this flower spike, about 60 centimeters high. It may be a dwarf from of Xanthorea the Australian grass tree but I'm not sure.

The Helichrysum pictured is the first I've noticed this spring. The paper-like petals last long after the seed-head has dispersed.

The bright orange/yellow of the lichen on this fence post was almost luminous in the overcast conditions of today's weather.

I created this arrangement of curving lines with red callistemon from the garden in three bamboo vases that I had made a couple of years ago. I set the exercise for my students, to make an arrangement using more than two vases and featuring curving lines. I decided to avoid the obvious use of the easily curved lines of bulrushes (called cat-tail in Japan and the US). The callistemon had a good gentle natural curve that I discovered could not be easily increased without breaking the stems.

Here is a simplified version of the same material in a ceramic vase by Barrie Singleton. The vase has a splash made of tiny red lines on one side.

On the other side are just a few of the red lines which are probably only visible if you are able to enlarge the picture.

Greetings from Christopher 

6th November 2011