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Saturday, April 24, 2010

The Peonies Are in Bloom Again

 Patricia Youngquist uses words and images to tell stories about her passions. Based in New York, she currently is authoring a series of nature books on birds of the city. Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11

Peonies always represent elegance and style, don't you think? They are certainly wonderful for rendering into images to use for wedding invitations. 

After all, the peony flower is the twelfth anniversary flower and is thought to be the omen of a happy marriage. The intended title for this new invitation is a modification of the famous Katharine Hepburn quote, in her role of Terry Randall (Stage Door) where she moved audiences with her words, "The calla lilies are in bloom again." My peonies are in bloom again, and it harkens me back to the time I first became aquatinted with peonies as cut flowers. 

My grandfather introduced them to me (seen in the photograph below), when I was a toddler, his gentle hands bringing those beautiful petals to my impressionable nose.



Peonies, I was to learn from stories he would tell, were named after Paeon (also known as Paean), a student of Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine and healing. 

I learned Asclepius became jealous of his pupil and Zeus saved Paeon from the wrath of Asclepius by turning him into a peony flower. How often as a child, when anticipating the wrath of my parents, did I find comfort in imaging myself turned into a peony - until I learned that mischievous nymphs were known to hide in the petals of the peony, thus causing the magnificent flower to be given the meaning of Shame or Bashfulness in the Language of Flowers. I do admit peonies tend to look shy at times.

This is captured in this image posted below (taken in my amazing urban garden)! 


Patricia Youngquist uses words and images to tell stories about her passions. Based in New York, she currently is authoring a series of nature books on birds of the city. Now in Apple’s iBooks store @ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/words-in-our-beak/id1010889086?mt=11


FALL 2018 ADDENDUM: 

I no longer actively produce event program covers, invitations and the types of greeting cards described here or on my website but arrangements might be able to be made under certain circumstances. My focus is on the Words In Our Beak book series, pictured below...

MY BOOK SERIES


...whose stories are told from the point of view of Cam, a female cardinal, whose photo is on the cover of each book. Words In Our Beak’s goal is to open readers to a simple understanding of the winged world and their environment. Set in my rooftop urban garden in New York City. Words In Our Beak is directed to children and adults who are curious about birds, and want to learn about them from a unique perspective. The books include hundreds of images of flora and fauna, links to movies, as well as to informative narratives that have been created by the author.

Please click here to go to my blog post that provides details as to where you can get these books.

Additionally,  I have rendered some images from these books into other formats and they are available via Fine Art America (FAA). Some of my other photographs (Black & White Collection, Kaleidoscopic Images and the famous Mandarin duck who visited NYC) can also be found on my FAA pages.

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