This is not just a really old pastel drawing of Meconopsis betonicifolia, known as the Himalayan blue poppy - it is also a testament to my enduring and painful love affair with plants I can't grow. I'll set my heart either on something that should grow in much cooler climates, and obsessively stack ice cubes around it to try and make it flower (take, for example, the Great Peony Disaster of 2009), or else something that may not, under any circumstances, encounter frost, and spend all my time protecting it. I have to say the latter approach works better - my impala lilies, for instance, not only are still alive but flower most years. I think it goes without saying that I won't be trying to grow Meconopsis betonicifolia any time soon, as those in the know say that if you live in a climate where you can grow tomatoes, you can't grow Meconopsis. But that doesn't mean I'll stop yearning for them.
That's where art takes over...to realize the dreams and desires we cannot actualize in time and space.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful blues!
That's true Athanasius... I'm finding you can "collect" things by drawing them, which will do wonders for my cupboard space :)
ReplyDeleteHaving spent some time in the Northwest Frontier Province the last time I went to Pakistan to visit my mother's side of the family, may I say that you have captured them perfectly - and sharply brought back some wonderful memories. Thank you! xx
ReplyDeleteYou've seeeeeeen them, I'm so jealous! (As you can tell from the bokeh and, well, the fact that I live in South Africa, I used a photo for reference for these - probably from some old house-and-garden magazine).
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