Irish Flower Series: LILAC ART PRINT

Hello! I want to write a little bit about the new series of Irish Flower Art Prints I have just launched on my website, in-particular my Lilac Art Print.

This Spring I finally got around to working on a personal project I have been wanting to do for a while. I have from time to time made art prints as gifts for family & friends, these would mainly be of botanicals & plants and have a special connection for that person. So I decided to ask all my friends and family to tell me what their favourite childhood flower / plant was and make a collection – they also made nice housewarming gifts!

The Lilac Art Print was the first plant I illustrated as a gift and is my own favourite plant from childhood. It is the smell of Lilac that does it for me – bringing me right back to my Nanna Mackey’s garden. She would always give me a big bunch to bring into school for the May table and I remember holding a bunch of it for the May Procession ( remember those? ) in my holy communion dress. It takes me back to sunny, warm Sunday afternoons in her garden and the happy memories of those days.

Here is my ode to the lovely lilac from my Nana’s garden with its small, pretty cluster of flowers amongst it’s heart shaped leaves and intense perfume. Oscar Wilde describes the smell so vividly.

“burying his face in the great cool lilac-blossoms, feverishly drinking in their perfume as if it had been wine . . .” Oscar Wilde | Dorian Gray