Alas, my poor shima nishiki peony only put out one striped bloom this year, and I didn't get good pix of it. So to make up, here are some nice, dramatic Hephaestos blooms from the local peony garden—I love the richness of the colour and dramatic shape, and since I'm theoretically dyeing and/or embroidering peonies in the relatively near future, I thought it would be helpful to have some reference.

The photo above reminds me of exuberant peony blossoms on some kimono what with its deep rich colours, erratically cut fringes, and most especially those extravagantly twisted and flopping petals. So I tried painting it, making this photo for reference. The paintings (& drawings) were failures, but the photo is at least ok.

Below: the same flower, from an even more aggressive angle.

The next flower shows classic conformation, with inner petals wrapping around the center, while the outer drooping ones serve as an elegant frame.

More classic conformation, but backlit. Hephaestus, by the way, was the Greek god of blacksmiths and the breeder, Nassos Daphnis named many of his cultivars after characters of Greek mythology—or artists, such as my beloved Gauguin^[1] —the former because Daphnis himself was born in Greece, the latter because he was an artist, specifically a painter.

Kimono (for which these images are to serve as reference) do not classically ever show peonies half shorn of their petals, presumably because such large, dramatic flowers typically are the province of young women; older women's kimono iconography tends to the smaller and somber; big and bold tends to be reserved for 振袖/furisode. It is for this reason I suspect that past-their-prime peonies are not featured, as a fading flower would be inappropriate symbolism for a young person, and peonies themselves for an older one.

Nevertheless, I can think of at least one potential recipient who would very much enjoy having such imagery on kimono; her appreciation has increased my own for these later stages of bloom, so I included this one here.

Unless otherwise noted, text, image and objects depicted therein copyright 1996--present sylvus tarn.

Sylvus Tarn