13. IX. Cul-De-Lampe

IX. Cul-De-Lampe is inspired by the book Baudelaire, l’art contre l’ennui by Stéphane Guégan, which is newly offered by Librairie Jeu de Paume. This essay, without separating the poet from the journalist, re-examines Baudelaire’s deflagration and how it still continues today. Inspired by Baudelaire and his Les Fleurs Du Mal, DSQBL created this floral arrangement based on Odilon Redon’s etching that accompanies the famous volume. The floral composition emphasises the gloomy side of the celebrated sunflower whose blossom is reminiscent of an eye (a recurring motif in Redon's oeuvre). The sunflower’s bright colours stand for light and brightness, while at the same time, its posture and movements are symbolic for melancholy and darkness, when the sun has sunken beneath the horizon.

Place in high, narrow vase in direct sunlight. Refresh water every day.

Odilon Redon, “IX. Cul-de-lampe”, 1891, © Kröller-Müller-Museum

Summer Camp was created with a focus on floral arrangements with alternative architectures. DSQBL created this multi-layered floral composition stimulated by the work of artist Jean-Charles Blais. The famous French artist, who is currently exhibiting at Librairie Yvon Lambert, paints on the back of torn off posters which, due to his creative interventions, are given a new artistic lease of life. His multi-layered arrangements contain accidental frames and folded structures, which arise in the tearing process. Through this bouquet, DSQBL aims to respond to the spontaneity of Blais’ creative process, that offers a unique perspective on the materiality of the picture space.

Place in low, narrow vase in indirect sunlight. Refresh water with lukewarm water every two days.

Jean-Charles Blais, exhibition view of “Summer Camp”, 2021 © Yvon Lambert Bookshop

Étudiantes Des Ateliers De Tissage Du Bauhaus was inspired by the work and legacy of Bauhaus master Gunta Stölzl. Stölzl was a German textile artist who played a fundamental role in the development of the Bauhaus school's weaving department as it transitioned from individual pictorial works to modern industrial designs. In this floral arrangement, DSQBL used the classical shape of a traditional bouquet, while rejecting the hierarchy of standard flower arranging. The composition is flat, like tapestry, allowing the natural structures of the individual flowers to create patterns reminiscent of the weave techniques that made Stölzl a household name.

Place in narrow vase in indirect sunlight. Refresh water with lukewarm water every other day.

Charlotte Beese, “Sans titre (étudiantes des ateliers de tissage du Bauhaus, Dessau)”, 1928, © The Museum of Modern Art, New-York

The Colors of Noise is a bouquet inspired by the newest issue of Les Others magazine, which is dedicated to sound and listening. As an hommage to the listening ear, this floral arrangement is composed exclusively with the colors of noise. In audio engineering, there’s a wide variety of noise colors, each with its own unique properties, that are used to produce music and sound. Volume 13 of the magazine speaks of a new, revolutionary era, in which it’s time for us to open our ears wide and listen.

Cut stems at sharp angle every three days and place in high, narrow vase in indirect  sunlight.Refresh water every two days.

Image by Mwchalmers for Creative Commons, The Colors of Noise, 2015.

09. Späte Sommerzeit Grüsst Herbstbriefschreiber

Späte Sommerzeit Grüsst Herbstbriefschreiber was inspired by Späte Sommerzeit Grüsst Herbstbriefschreiber by Karl Uelliger. The floral arrangement is a collection of colorful flowers containing the rich color palet of sun-up and sun-down. A seasonal assembly referring to the bitter sweet transition from summer to fall.

Place in narrow, high vase in direct sunlight. Refresh water and clean vase every day.

︎Vase included.

Karl Uelliger, "Späte Sommerzeit Grüsst Herbstbriefschreiber", 1984, © The artist

08. Blót 1

Blót 1 is a classical, unaltered bouquet inspired by the installation by Marit Westerhuis. Plants which were already native to Europe long before the development of mankind and have not changed until today dominate this flower bouquet. The composition is inspired by Marit Westerhuis, whose impressive installation Blót 1 is based on extensive research into the relationship between earth, mankind and technology.

Place in spacious vase with cold water in indirect sunlight. Refresh with cold water every other day.

Marit Westerhuis, “Blót 1", 2019, © The artist, Rijksakademie (Photo: Gert Jan van Rooij, Rijksakademie, Amsterdam)

Between Light by Children Of The Light (shown at Oude Kerk) inspired this bouquet. The floral composition aims to illustrate the classical, architectural elements of a church. Arranged using mostly flowers with a religious context, the bouquet evokes a sensation of movement. Physically, as well as spiritually.

Place in high, narrow vase out of direct sunlight. Refresh with cold water every other day.

Children Of The Light, "Between Light", 2019, © The artists and Oude Kerk (Photo: Peter Tijhuis, Oude Kerk, Amsterdam)

Sanctum, commissioned by Het Hem, was inspired by Levi van Veluw’s Sanctum and composed based on the characteristics of an altar. Using elements of elevation, the elegant, rising structure of the bouquet seems to reach for the sky. An almost holy composition that refers to a sanctuary. A safe haven. Calm and peaceful.

Place in high, narrow vase with lukewarm water in indirect sunlight. Refresh water every two days.

Levi van Veluw, "Sanctum", 2019, © The artist, Het Hem and Tenuta Dello Scompiglio (Photo: Levi van Veluw, Het Hem, Zaandam)

05. Untitled (White Glitter)

Untitled (White Glitter) is a unique bouquet inspired by Ann Veronica Janssens’ Untitled (White Glitter). The visual aspect of Janssens’ work reminds the viewer of motion, like an ocean wave. Thus the floral arrangement consists of soft, delicate flowers that reference colors and organisms found in oceans and their surroundings.

Place in small open vase with luke-warm water, out of direct sunlight. Refresh water every two days.

Ann Veronica Janssens, "Untitled (White Glitter)", 2016, © The artist and Bortolami New York (Photo: Peter Cox, De Pont Museum, Tilburg) 

Bestiari was commissioned by Mister Motley and was inspired by Bestiari by Albert Merino. The composition brings together ornamental, wild plants growing in the streets of Amsterdam and greenhouse bred species. High-performance floral species, often genetically manipulated, now dominate the supply of most flower shops and contribute to the loss of biodiversity. Even the outdoor environment is increasingly dominated by manipulated varieties, and in the future it will become more and more difficult to distinguish between the natural and the artificial.

A wild and unpredictable bouquet. Place in spacious, high vase in direct sunlight. Refresh water and clean vase every day.

Albert Merino, "Bestiari", 2018, © The artist (Photo: Albert Merino, videostill)

Still Life is a bouquet, commissioned by Het Hem for Lynk & Co as a sign of gratitude for a fruitful collaboration, that was inspired by Still Life by RAAAF, which is one of the permanent works installed at Het Hem. This bouquet is a floral still life that fuses the past with the present and holds the future within. The viewer is encouraged to revisit what was considered lost and to see potential of the old within the new.

A bouquet suitable for the fall season, consisting entirely of dry flowers. Place in high, narrow vase (without water) in indirect sunlight.

︎Vase included.

RAAAF, “Still Life”, 2019, © The artist, Het Hem. (Photo: C. Eeftinck Schattenkerk, Het Hem, Zaandam)

Exit Strategy (Diet Mountain View) is simultaniously a joyful and imaginative bouquet as well as a dysmal and dark one. Inspired by Friederich Kunath’s Exit Strategy (Diet Mountain View), this composition holds a mixture of real and fake flowers. A celestial atmosphere containing the mercurial colors of the sky.

Place in spacious vase with luke-warm water in direct sunlight. Refresh water every other day.

Friedrich Kunath, "Exit Strategy (Diet Mountain View)“, 2012, Private Collection, © The artist and BQ, Berlin (Photo: Christie’s)

Rûschegg is a bouquet composed exclusively of wild forest flowers, which have been picked by us personally in the Swiss Alps. Authentic and wild, the floral arrangement embodies the pictorial language of the painting Rüschegg by Franz Gertsch.

Place in narrow vase with somewhat cold water in indirect sunlight. Refresh water every two days.

Franz Gertsch, "Rüschegg", 1988, Collection Albertina Museum, © The artist, Albertina Museum