flower art in a hotel

I've wanted to try hammering flowers into art and since starting my own residency (Day 55) I've given myself permission to try new ways of creating all the time, anywhere I can.

My partner and I hadn't seen each other for a few weeks. I’d been in Ottawa for work, while he in LA. We decided to meet in Vancouver before heading back to Los Angeles.

When I arrived at the hotel, a bouquet of flowers, chocolates and massager were arranged on my side of the bed. I teared up but then immediately wondered - how do I bring these beautiful flowers home?

It was the perfect time to test out hammered flower art. Now I just needed paper.

From research I knew that people who typically do hammered or smashed flower art use watercolor paper. I decided it would be my mission, the next day, to find some.

The Regional Assembly of Text is located at 3934 Main St. in Vancouver. I think the neighborhood is called Riley Park. I love a store like this more - paper products, doo-dads, knick-knacks. It even had a nook under the stairs that you could sit and read zines!!

I selected a small sketchbook that had could flip open flat, with watercolor paper and a vinyl wrap that was perfect for removing and using to place over the flowers to help keep them in place when they get hammered.

I'm a fan of using everything you have, so I used the massager as my hammer.

The result was… not what I expected, but it was something created on a hotel bed. I'm sure if I had a hard surface with a hammer and different flowers, the result would change, but I did enjoy observing the markings each time I pulled the petals and leaves off the paper.

I think I'll do a few more and leave some flowers for the hotel cleaners with a thank you note.

This style of creating is really fun. It makes me want to use this as an excuse to walk around the neighborhood looking for the brightest flowers that have fallen on the ground.