
Back downstairs he lead a small group into a freezer room where boxes of flowers are stored at 30° Fahrenheit. He explained that all the flowers are shipped from South America. Roses arrived with 200 blooms per box. They are wrapped in groups of 25 although they are sold by the dozen. Several beautiful arrangements were stored for an upcoming event. Friends of the Philharmonic were sipping wine to relax before the arranging began. Ten to twenty orange clay pots were set out for the students. Wet green foam blocks were placed in each pot.
I decided to climb half way up the spiral staircase to get an overall view of everyone at work. Everyone was first asked to arrange yellow, orange and red roses so they looked like elegant round topiary spires. Smaller blooms and greenery were arranged at the base. The long blades of saw grass had serrated edges so everyone was warned to be careful. I rushed the sketch thinking that the arrangements would probably be finished quickly. I was wrong. Arranging flowers is a subtle art and it takes time and lots of concentration. My eye glasses were filthy. I kept tilting my head to look around distracting fingerprints as I drew. I took my glasses off when I painted. Everything was blurry but at least the colors were vibrant. Sunlight streamed through the shop's glass doors as the sun set.
1 comment:
I enjoy your sketches, this one captures the activity very well.
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