The Art of Subtlety

It's spring, and I love flowers, so I bought some today. They are a frivolous purchase, and I don't get them often, but they weren't overly expensive at Sam's, and we were shopping for Easter and I just did it. When we got home I put them in a vase to enjoy.

Now, I'm no flower arranger, but to a certain extent, the flowers are pretty, and stuffed into a vase they are... well... still pretty. Pretty hard to completely mess it up, you know? Which is a good thing, because there is an art to arranging them, making depth and breadth, and placing color and all. I get that those things can happen, and be amazing. Even when they are simple. But, yeah, probably not when I'm doing it. So, its a really good thing that flowers can just be pretty when stuffed into a vase.

So, what is my point here? I think the art of flower arranging is basically a subtle art. The artist makes subtle changes in the placement of flowers and greenery to make a more beautiful arrangement. There is shape, and balance. They know where to cut the stems, etc. I'm not that subtle person. I'm happy to cut the stems long enough to reach the water, yet short enough that I don't make the whole thing way too top-heavy. Then it goes from pretty to a mess. One that _I_ have to clean up.

I think that all style is probably part of that subtle art. It takes someone with a practiced eye to realize it is there. It takes an even more educated eye to totally understand what is going on - what the artist is trying to say, perhaps. Then, there is that further step of being able to create style. On purpose, with intent. (I think some people have an intuitive feel for it, and others of us sometimes get lucky). I think that I am somewhere in that middle step, working on recognizing and understanding style. I don't think I have an intuitive feel for it, although I think I can learn something about making it, or at least creating my own.

That being said, I do think there is a place in the world for the appreciation for the simplicity of the enjoyment of a thing, without worrying whether it is high art or not. It is good to be able to say, I sure do like those flowers, even if I did just stuff them in a vase...