How many flowers grow in an Irish country garden?

Yanny Petters:  ‘The pea family’ – Bush Vetch, Meadow Vetchling, Tufted Vetch.

There are 75 paintings of flowers in the Olivier Cornet Gallery at the moment. These are exquisitely detailed paintings on glass by Yanny Petters and, when the light catches them, they cast fanciful shadows on the wall behind.  Beautiful.

But when I read that each one was drawn from nature, a selection from the myriad wild flowers that were growing in her garden, I was intrigued.  Could there really be 75 different flowers in one garden?

“Come and see”, she said.

So I went to visit her the other day, to her rambling old house behind the Scalp in Co. Wicklow.  It was lovely.  I could hear the wind singing in the tall trees that surrounded the house. The Virginia creeper had turned a vivid scarlet. Cyclamens clustered around the tree trunks and some lonesome Nerine lilies swayed in the breeze, by the door.  Courgettes and Chard jostled for position in the raised beds.

We picked and ate some late raspberries…

Yanny Petters:  ‘In the vegetable patch’ – Scarlet Pimpernel, Forget-me-not, Wild Sorrel.

Her parents had tended this garden for many years. There was a mature walnut tree in the front, grown from a walnut that had been sent over from Germany.  Sometimes plants take on a special significance. This garden must hold so many fond memories.

I was reminded of the Forget-me-nots that came from my own mother’s garden. They’re now growing in our garden in Harold’s Cross (and gradually spreading around the neighbourhood!).  They reappear every year in April, awakening old memories and reminding us of the resilience and sheer extravagance of nature.

So I was delighted to see Yanny’s Forget-me-nots featuring in the exhibition, along with the many wildflowers that bloom at different times of the year in her garden.

And now I’m not surprised that there are 75 different species in the show.

Yanny Petters and Olivier Cornet at the opening.   Photo: Tony Kearns

PS:  There will be a nice event in the gallery next Wednesday (3rd of November) – a conversation between Yanny Petters and the art historian Jean Ryan.  (Link below).

In conversation with Yanny Petters

https://www.oliviercornetgallery.com/

https://www.yannypetters.net/