Pressed flower art - birds made of dried plants

Working with dried plants and pressed flowers for many years I discovered how many ideas can be realized using this natural material. Today I am going to show you a few ideas how to build images of birds using dried flowers.

 

The works you see here were made of real plants and flowers. More precisely, it is made of flower petals, small leaves from trees and shrubs, and even broken flower parts. They are always unique models and already found their owners in my Etsy shop.

The most important part of preparing such a job is finding the right picture of a bird. I am always inspired by old chinese and japanese paintings in style called Ink wash painting (shuǐmòhuà; suiboku-ga, sumi-e; sumukhwa). Suibokuga is a style of monochrome painting characterized by the use of just two things, black ink (sumi) and water. Deceptively simple, suibokuga artists make use of these two seemingly mundane materials to create a complex world of light, form, and even texture.  

Sumi-e style painting (left) vs my interpretation made of pressed plants (right)

 

Then we select the materials, sometimes a few leaves, small flowers and twigs are enough. Sometimes the arrangement of the picture goes smoothly, and sometimes I have to throw away my work. One thing is for sure - it takes a lot of patience. But when You get everything right You will get a simple, minimalist floral home decor. Full of colors and nature accents. Perfect gift for many occasions.