A popular topic request among many of you was women artists. We have a lovely column in Victoria magazine called Artist-in-Residence. It highlights women who have used their talents to create beautiful things and share them with others!
Today I am sharing an excerpt from Victoria by Cynthia Reeser Constantino about fashionista and design maven Carolyne Roehm. I hope you are as inspired by her beautiful creations as I am!
Looking to botanical artists such as Maria Sibylla Merian and Pierre-Joseph Redouté, Carolyne sought to learn the art form yet set aside the scientific lens, which, for those illustrators, was the focal point. But, “that [approach] was not where my heart was,” she says. “I wanted to use my flowers as inspiration, make my butterflies and insects big and out of scale.”
Paintings by Carolyne Roehm
In a pursuit that has become a form of meditation, she looks to Merian for inspiration. “Despite her scientific intentions, Maria was a great visual fantasist,” Carolyne writes in At Home in the Garden, “and her pictures inspired me to put together elements from my garden in ways that are less literal and more playful and narrative-rich.” Look for Carolyne’s paintings, now available on note cards (see below), at carolyneroehm.com.
Notecards by Carolyne Roehm