“I marvel at the unfurling of a petal, the opening of a blossom pod, a seed head flinging its bounty. The transformation has always sparked wonder in me, since being sent as a child of a farm to the garden to pick whatever was ready for supper that night. I find creative inspiration and joy in the flow of being from seed to blossom to …

Layers of translucent colored pencils, chalk pastels on a gritty surface, watercolor in soft washes, pressed petals playing together. 

Flowers, landscapes of color and texture, petals, bouquets, abstractions of all these things:

All are before me.

 -Susan McChesney

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Having drawn for all my life, my vision shifted to include pressing flowers and leaves from Western North Carolina and collaging them into landscapes.

So many of the same elements come into play: color, shape, texture, value… but transformed by the fragility and variety presented by nature.

Surrounded by flowers, I am grateful for their bounty.