Fine-art that ages with you
Art can capture a moment or tell a unique story. In paintings, the strokes and techniques used capture the artist’s style while subject matter informs and creates context. In floral preservation, every bloom pressed symbolizes a significant moment in the context of your life.
Historically, professional paintings have changed over time even after harsh restoration attempts. Floral preservation is no exception to the changes that time will have on art.
Pressed Floral is proud of mastering an art that gracefully ages with you. Over time, we become more delicate, fragile, wrinkled and worn, and there is a beauty in letting our art transform along with us.
Decay in natural art
fine art that ages with you
At Pressed Floral, we use all-natural methods of floral preservation to capture your unique, significant moments in time. While there is a history of botanicals lasting centuries in herbariums with thousands of species preserved, organic elements of nature will always become more delicate and faded over time--which we believe makes it all the more beautiful.
famous art that has aged beautifully
Did you know, the historically significant European art pieces we have come to associate with timelessness and class have changed over time? Think Renaissance paintings, Greek marble statues, and even ornate wood carvings. Although they have changed over time, we have come to perceive these artifacts that are not immune to time and weather as highly valuable.
Food for thought: Does the knowledge that something doesn’t last forever inherently give it more value?
The Mona Lisa was never supposed to emulate that dark, moody atmosphere we have come to love today. Although some people argue that the Mona Lisa should be cleaned by conservationists, others argue that it shouldn’t be touched because the structural integrity of the canvas might be compromised. .Often times, conservationists will do their best to restore old paintings to their original form, but when the painting is at risk of falling apart, professionals opt to keep the aged paintings as they are so we may study and enjoy them for years to come. There is an inherent beauty in letting art age with time, as it tells a story that the fresh piece could not.
Left: Digitally rendered version of the original Mona Lisa / Right: Current detailed picture of the Mona Lisa.
The Treu Head, photo: Wikimedia
The Treu Head, photo: British Museum
Left: Painted Replica of original The Treu Head / Right: Current detailed picture of The Treu Head.
What about Greek statues? They are a symbol of refinement and class with their marbely white personas. Did you know, Greek statues were originally painted in vibrant colors? Art Historians have created replicas of what those statues would’ve looked like at the time, and surprisingly, people aren’t fans of the vibrant, seemingly “tacky” colors because it doesn’t align with how they have come to perceive these classical. realistic statues.
The Science of paintings changing over time
In paintings, each layer put down on the canvas effects how the layer on top of it will settle as well as age over time. The varnish is a protective, clear layer that gives paintings a cohesively textured final layer, and protects them from the elements. Experimental methods of painting result in different aging effects over time. If you are painting on a wood panel, the softness, hardness, and species of wood you are using will effect how the paint holds and withers over time. Although extensive treatment methods are given to famous old paintings such as the Mona Lisa, modern conservators admit that after intrusive conservation techniques, the painting may be altered significantly from the original painting. Through x-rays of old paintings, researchers are able to see artistic choices made, perceived mistakes corrected, and how subject matter completely changed over the course of the artist’s development of the painting. By using harsh chemicals to strip away aged layers, we might be destroying pieces of valuable history. Did you know that there are paintings that have entire other paintings underneath them? The process of painting tells a story that could be arguably more significant than what we perceive as the final piece.
Decay in art
What about art that purposefully uses decay as an element or subject matter?
Just as line, form, and texture is used in paintings, contemporary artists use or gather inspiration from the natural process of decay to use as a distinct element of the final art piece.
The subject matter of decay in art often tends to highlight the beauty in what is often seen as something ugly. Decay can also be used metaphorically in conceptual art to explore themes related to decline, loss, and the passage of time. Artists might use decay to symbolize personal or societal issues, making a statement about how time affects both physical and intangible aspects of life.
photo: Agnieszka Trzoch
fine art that ages with you
pressed floral
Traditional Bouquet, 18x24, Natural Wood Wide Moulding
Pressed Floral's process combines both traditional methods of botanical earth art, and professional modern preservation and framing techniques--so you can have a piece of art that lasts forever, while gracefully aging with you.
Our bespoke pieces of art are completely organic materials, sealed carefully in UV protected glass and custom framing. While varnish, paint, and canvas will slowly fade and stretch over centuries, flowers will age even more rapidly due to their inherent organic nature. Even flowers that are alive and thriving in rich soil only bloom for a short season.
We have mastered the art of preserving the essence and design of your flowers in fine art-grade glass and frames while allowing those blooms to fade and wrinkle naturally. We don't claim to defy the laws of nature and use harmful chemicals that will harm the earth in the long run.
How beautiful is it that you can live and watch a piece of your personal history age with you? While the beauty of flowers can last forever, the significance embodied in this symbolic art-form is what we are most passionate about.