Alice in Bloomland

This weekend I visited the Alice in Bloomland exhibit at the Royal Botanical Gardens with my sister, sister-in-law and son. I knew that there would be whimsy and an air of magic in the exhibits as is known with a theme such as Alice, but what was unexpected was there sheer amount of orchids on display. There were so many different colours and varieties of orchids throughout the entire exhibit that at some points we were wondering if they were all real. Contributing to this sense of the strange and unknown was that some of the orchids were colour infused. Their bright blues and witchy purple colours in contrast to their giant blooms (they really were the largest orchid blooms I think I have ever seen) had an ethereal quality that really set the stage for the overall theme.

Familiar characters and scenes from the story were introduced throughout the pavilion. We spied the Mad Hatters hat, Rabbit’s clock, the tea party, Cheshire Cat’s smile, bright pink flamingos, Caterpillar resting on his mushroom, workers painting the roses red and the Red Queen herself, holding court for all in attendance. For those inclined there were plenty of selfie opportunities, but as you likely guessed, I was most excited about the flowers and the wonder and imagination of the exhibits. As I kept walking through I was thinking how fun it would have been to come up with this idea for a theme and to build and create the elements of the exhibits. Alice in Wonderland was one of those stories that as a child opened my mind to a world of imagination and fantasy. After all, how interesting would it be as a child to fall down a hole and arrive in a world of make believe?

In one of the atriums, there was a chorus of spring flowers planted around the perimeter of the room. As soon as you entered, the smell of perfumed hyacinths and daffodils filled the air and it was the most welcoming smell of spring. I, of course, spent quite a lot of time photographing spring flowers in this area as I cannot wait for them to arrive outdoors and I am always happy to collect more inspiration for my archives and I ended up temporarily losing my group.

I caught up with them in the tropicals area, filled with palms, bromeliads, orchids and anthuriums. There was also quite a show of other non-tropical flowers in this area, with the most spectacular being the cyclamen, delphiniums and amaryllis. I was very caught up in the beauty of the cyclamen in this area as they were blooming much larger and more beautiful than I am use to seeing as well. They clearly loved the hot and humid climate of the tropicals.

The pavilion gallery had a fibre arts exhibit that paired well with the Alice in Bloomland theme with its vibrant colours and whimsical themes. There were rug-hooked wall hangings and fishing nets weaved into structures and pillowy fabric installations. The most captivating installation was sheets of gauze that appeared to be embroidered with various flower studies. This installation was the crowd favourite and fascinating to look at. Unfortunately, I don’t think my photos did it justice and it would be best to see it in person to really get the sense of whimsy and magic of the display.

After we had seen everything there was to see, I of course had to stop by the gift shop and purchase an orchid. I had seen this beautiful variegated purple one on my way in and was determined if it was still available when I was leaving that I would make it my own. I also have two orchid plants blooming at home right now, so it is very likely that an upcoming painting for the 100 Day Project will have orchids in them.

Speaking of the 100 Day Project, I have finished my fourth pattern for the project and we are a fifth of the way through. I have now create a section on my portfolio page where you can see all of the patterns together. I am quite enjoying how they look together and it will be so interesting to see how it comes together when all 20 patterns are complete.

For my fourth pattern of the project, I decided to paint papaya flowers and fruit. I think it has a lovely tropical beachy vibe and I have imagined how pretty they would look in a home with white linens and palms and wooden floors. As with all the patterns in this project I have posted the painting process video to YouTube.

If you would like to see all of the patterns that have been created so far, they can be viewed by clicking here.

As always, I hope that you have a lovely week and find a moment of creativity to keep you inspired.

Laura