Three Famous Artists who Painted Flowers

If you can’t get enough of the beauty of spring flower arrangements, you’re not alone. Throughout history, flowering plants and scented blooms have never failed to captivate the senses of millions of people. In fact, some were so enchanted by the essence of flowers that they devoted a large portion of their lives to capturing their images on canvas. Three artists in particular were diligent about their portrayals of nature’s most beautiful life forms.

Georgia O’Keeffe
Born in 1887, O’Keeffe grew up in Wisconsin, where she received art lessons at home and eventually aspired to become a painter. After first struggling to find her own unique artistic voice, she was able to settle into a life full of color, nature and stunning pieces of art.

Her large-scale paintings of May flowers, leaves and trees offer viewers a close-up image of these natural forms, as showcased in her paintings “Jimson Weed” and “Black Hollyhock, Blue Larkspur.”

“I have but one desire as a painter – that is to paint what I see, as I see it, in my own way, without regard for the desires or taste of the professional dealer or the professional collector,” she once said. It’s evident that her view is loved by many, as more than 500 examples of her works are on display in over 100 collections across the globe, reports the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum’s website.

Claude Monet
This French pioneer of the Impressionism movement focused many of his works on landscapes that showcased the subtleties of color and light as affected by changes in the time of day or season. He was born in 1840 and spent the majority of his life painting outside, especially in his gardens.

Monet’s work wasn’t looked upon favorably at first, as art critics of the time were used to precise, detailed paintings that represented life exactly as it was. Rather than capturing precise images, Monet focused more on his impressions of nature. Some of his most famous paintings capture water lilies floating serenely on the surface of his pond.

Vincent van Gogh
Born in Holland in 1853, van Gogh was an emotional visionary with a passion for painting. While some of his most famous works focus on landscapes and self-portraits, many others included blooms, like “Poppies” and “Sunflowers.”

“Van Gogh’s inimitable fusion of form and content is powerful; dramatic, lyrically rhythmic, imaginative, and emotional, for the artist was completely absorbed in the effort to explain either his struggle against madness or his comprehension of the spiritual essence of man and nature,” states The Van Gogh Gallery’s website. Although his unhappy life was cut short, Van Gogh managed to successfully interpret the world of flowers around him.