BEAUTIFUL INTERPRETATIONS OF BEAUTIFUL FLORA

HEIDI WOODHEAD

So lush and seductive, we want to dive in to fully feel the soft velvet petals of Heidi Woodhead’s floral paintings. We want to be enveloped by their satin crush and sumptuous scent.

Reminiscent of both Georgia O’Keeffe’s close-up flower studies and, oddly, Edwards Hopper’s emotional nocturnal vignettes, Woodhead’s smooth surfaces seem lit, as if by white moonlight, adding to the intimate nature of her flower portraits series.

Hailing from Australian heritage, now based in Hobart, Tasmania, Woodhead originally worked as a forensic crime scene examiner, which honed her eye for detail. Yet, she uses restraint in her choice of just how much detail to feature in her imagery.

Woodhead’s paintings explore themes of life and decay, romance and sensuality, depth and whimsy. She has been inspired by Dutch botanical and Vanitas paintings of the 17th & 18th centuries.

Dark moody backgrounds offer contrast and drama, giving hard relief to the abundance of luscious floral forms, all painted in oils on linen.

Woodhead’s works are held in private and corporate collections both in Australia and overseas.

See the similarities and contrasts between Woodhead & O’Keeffe -- check out our upcoming Daily Fix post, 07.30.16, in which we feature Georgia O’Keeffe’s new retrospective exhibition at the Tate Modern, in London.

Read more about Beautiful Flora in Beautiful Flora in 10 New Beautiful Books Now,  Wow! Flower Power is Happening Now! and Beautiful Edible Flora Now!

And check out more beautiful things happening now in BN Arts/Design, Nature/Science, Food/Drink, Place/Time, Mind/Body, and Soul/Impact Daily Fix posts.

Want more stories like this? Sign up for our weekly BN Newsletter, Like us on Facebook. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr. Join our BeautifulNow Community and connect with the most beautiful things happening in the world right now!

Do you have amazing photos? Enter them in this week’s BN Photo Competition. We run new creative competitions every week! Now, it’s even easier to enter with the new BeautifulNow App!

Plus check out the rest of our App’s beautiful features. It’s free to download here.

IMAGE CREDITS:

1. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Poppies.”
2. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Gone Like Yesterday.”
3. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Heritage Roses.”
4. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Frangipanis.”
5. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Raspberry Roses.”
6. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Magnolia Nocturne.”
7. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “In Company of Roses.”
8. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Blossomtime.”
9. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “Remains of the Day.”
10. Image: by BN App - Download now!
11. Image: by Heidi Woodhead. “King Magnolia.”