Human Flower Project
Portia Munson
Floral kaleidescopes bring spring back into view.
Portia Munson
Morning Glory Tobacco (2005)
Photo: PPOW Gallery
Time to finish wrapping those iPods and earrings. Or maybe not.
As an alternative, consider unwinding instead with these amazing floral mandalas by New York artist Portia Munson. “Icons of evanescence,” Jeanette Fitz calls them.
Munson’s show at PPOW Gallery has just come to a close, but for those of us too late or too far from Manhattan, the gallery generously posts several of Munson’s photo-scans.
This artist made a splash in the art world with Pink (1994), an installation of found plastic objects, and became known for her dumpster diving. In recent years, the search for art materials has led to a more intimate and earthy source: her garden in the Catskills.
Obviously, these pieces were made in another season, which in part makes them all the more impressive now. Her image of nicotina (tobacco flower) blossoms and morning glory buds may not qualify as a “Star of might,” but “Star of wonder”? Indeed.