STYLEBEAT: THE BIG BLOOMS OF PAUL LANGE

Photos courtesy of Paul Lange

Art imitates life and life imitates art. Art also has the power to transform, unite, as well as be uplifting. In floral photography, the life of a single, gorgeous bloom is frozen in time, giving each detailed, flower everlasting life. Capturing flower stems at the peak of perfection is former fashion photographer Paul Lange's specialty. A single, robust bloom, shot against a stark white backdrop makes them look as though they are floating, while the large scale of his work captures every detailed petal's crease and frilly edge with magnified clarity. It just so happens that Lange works with some of my favorite flowers, including peonies, anemones and poppies- so I was instantly smitten with his over sized prints named for women.

You may recognize the Hudson Valley, New York-based artist's work from Vogue, or perhaps you have seen his work hanging in Aerin Lauder's new Aerin offices, when they were featured in Architectural Digest. The magic in Lange's work is that it captures ephemeral moments of a flower's life cycle- a flower almost in bloom, at it's most perfect, and towards the end of it's greatness, as it is about to drop it's petals. The impact of these color saturated photos is undeniable- hung as a single piece or as a grid they make a BIG statement. I have shown only an assortment here, and his website reveals even more flowers that are part of his Big Bloom series. Since he prints his photographs himself, you can order them directly, and specify size. They are just happy-making, smile-inducing art and a nice way to start building a collection around color. Plus, it is a great way to kick off the month of April.