Posts tagged ‘Red’

Feb 22

Flower burst: Red Amaryllis

Buying fresh flowers is always a pleasure. You watch them open, you breathe deep of their sweet, nuanced perfume, and transform a corner of your home with their splendid colour. But alas, within days, their majesty is at an end, and their delicate structure becomes a vision of faded beauty. Happily, the process of flower growth and nurture can often last longer, and one of my favourite annual rituals is to buy a potted amaryllis bulb and, over the first weeks of the year, watch it grow.

I am always fascinated by the slow progress of the amaryllis flower, as a green shoot emerges from the innocuous brown bulb, and seems to escalate higher and higher until you wonder if it will ever stop. But then suddenly, as though exhausted by the effort of climbing some 40 or even 50 centimetres into the air, the flower shifts its focus to the lateral explosion of its colourful petal-rich head.

This year, I watched on in delight as I saw a very long green stalk open up into the most resplendent array of blood-rich red as my amaryllis burst open into four magnificent floral crowns. Almost swaying in surprise at the bounty of its own offerings, my amaryllis is top heavy with its heady creation, but somehow remains standing for many days of enjoyment. And just as I see the petals turn slowly decrepit with age, a new flower shoot bursts up from the side in reserve.

And so for days ahead, another floral array awaits me, as the newest manifestation of my amaryllis steps into the spotlight.

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2011-2018. Unauthorised use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.

Jun 28

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Celebrating all things radiant in RED – a photographic homage to Louboutin

It was only yesterday that I was extolling the virtues of all things red. That vibrant, rich colour, instantly attractive to the human eye, seducer of souls, seller of sex, and now the renowned glossy seller of stilettos in the form of Louboutin’s red-soled masterpieces. And it is in homage to that said innovative shoe-maker-to-the-chic that I have taken inspiration from the rosiest, most ravishing reds I could find, scanning through my photos and picking out some of my favourite photos which all have that rich, vibrant colour in common. Welcome to my world of Red…

: My painting of Segovia, in Spain (oil on canvas, 2010)

: The emblematic London telephone box

: That’s my mummy!

: Red bar in Madrid

: Coca-cola has made red its own – café in Toledo

: Candles in Barcelona Cathedral

: Complex stamen of the Hibiscus

: Blood red cala lily

: Gates of the bull ring – Granda, Spain

: Juicy strawberries aplenty, at the Mercado San Miguel in Madrid

: Autumn leaves – Richmond (London)

: Sun-dappled hibiscus

: Red, red rose

: Chairs (looking like red blood cells) in the Fundacio Juan MIro in Mallorca

: Paris’ chic art nouveau Metro

: A beef tomato

: Red roses, the epitome of romance

: Red stained glass, in Gaudi’s Sagrada Familia, Barcelona

: Pillar box and a phone box – red, the colour of London

: Plenty of red (and a bit of blue) – Plaza Mayor, Madrid

: Poppy

: Pharmacy sign in Volterra, Italy

: An abundance of tomatoes, Borough Market, London

: Marbella’s Almeda park fountain

: Mini pavlovas and my ceramic Las Meninas souvenir

: Vibrant geraniums

: More geraniums

: The red lights of Amsterdam

: Big red boat in the Albert Docks, Liverpool

: That perfect red rose

: Autumn berries in Richmond

: Just in case… fire bucket in the Port Vell, Barcelona

: Victorian post box, Wandsworth

: And again

: Seeing in the New Year with a burst of red

: Red autumn leaves, Richmond

: Red cocktail, with a zingy lime twirl

: Red walls on the Passeig del Born, Mallorca

: Cherries aplenty at the Mercado San Miguel in Madrid

© Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm, 2001-2012. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of the material, whether written work, photography or artwork, included within The Daily Norm without express and written permission from The Daily Norm’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Nicholas de Lacy-Brown and The Daily Norm with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.