Story behind the art of Mary Dillon
29th Annual International
American Society of Botanical Artists and the Society of Illustrators
‘In the Pink…’ Kanzan Cherry
Prunus 'Kanzan'
What is it about an unexpected encounter with sublime beauty that stops me in my tracks and compels me to paint? On a recent visit to Killruddery House and Gardens, County Wicklow—County Wicklow being known as the ‘Garden of Ireland’—I was mesmerized by the breadth and sheer expanse of this ancient Cherry ‘Kanzan’. I felt a desire to lose myself among the flowers, to press my face into their softness.
Few flowering trees announce the arrival of spring with the exuberant joy of Prunus serrulata ‘Kanzan’. Renowned for its abundant clusters of soft pink double blossoms, this ornamental cherry creates a spectacle that is both dramatic and otherworldly. In full blossom, the tree seems transformed into a cloud of color, reaching between earth and sky.
The beauty of these blossoms was not the only thing to captivate me. The blossoms seemed to transport me to two worlds. Standing beneath them, I was rooted in the present yet carried to other places in my mind. They opened a door to an inner space where memory and experience intertwined. While the blossoms are fleeting, the emotional connection is lasting.
As I painted, I found myself thinking of Michael Franks' song How I Remember You, where the passing seasons and small moments of beauty unlock memories of those who are and have been loved. In much the same way, 'In the Pink' is a meditation on that ephemeral moment when beauty catches us unaware - when blossoms become more than a subject to be observed. They become a feeling, a memory, and a reminder of how deeply the natural world can touch us.
Having completed some initial gestural and observational drawings of the tree, I soon realized that I would need to explore a large format composition so that, to quote Georgia O’Keeffe, "people would see what I see." Working on a full 22 by 30 inch sheet of hot press paper, I enlarged the bough by three. In creating this painting, careful observation of the distinctive double flowers, subtle variations of pink, and the tree’s characteristic sweeping habit provided the foundation for the painting.
Using a familiar limited palette of warm and cool primary colors, I had fun exploring the counterpoint between the warm and cool reds to emphasize the play of light over the petals of the emerging buds, the freshly opened flowers, and the complex layers of color on the flowers as they pass their prime. My painting was all about light - illuminating the fresh copper leaves, catching the petals at the focal point, and filtering through the translucent fading blooms on the underside of the bough. Working in wet, damp, and dry layers of transparent paint allows for a multiplicity of colors to sing through, creating the kaleidoscope of pinks in ‘In the Pink’.
For me, botanical art is not simply about recording a plant with scientific accuracy. It can also be about capturing a moment of connection—when observation, emotion, memory, and light converge. ‘In the Pink’ captures one such moment: a fleeting experience of beauty that continues to bloom long after the petals have fallen.
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Read more about this artist's work: 28th Annual