It's tempting to leaf through Cultivated from one color portrait of a floral design to the next, but Christin Geall entices readers into the text, where she earnestly describes how they, too, might savor the art of creation and the pride of display.
Geall, "like a magpie drawn to one shiny object after another," earned degrees in anthropology and environmental studies, and trained in herbalism and horticulture. Writing, painting and art history studies followed. Floral design and photography, plus her lifelong passion for plants, led to a position as florist-in-residence at a Scottish estate, where she created and photographed an arrangement every day. Geall's years of study and experience allow readers to move directly to the fun: arranging flowers and every "weed, seedpod or leaf that speaks to you."
While insisting this is not a "how to" book, Geall offers detailed tips. She simplifies choosing flowers and containers, optimum handling, designing color schemes (red is tricky!), considers shape (height is important for dinner arrangements) and more. Geall shares her love of history in "Learning from the Past," one of seven sections, and the photographs here require close inspection: Is that a Baroque painting? A Dutch masterpiece? Styles changed with culture and political movements (Marie Antoinette's hair "pouf" was imitated in arrangements), and floral design often spoke to current philosophies.
Cultivated, an excellent resource for the backyard gardener or the professional florist, is also an exquisite photography book for anyone who appreciates the art of floral design. --Cheryl McKeon, bookseller, Market Block Books, Troy, N.Y.