I wonder
if it's because I was born in Seattle, where dahlias are to be found
blooming ecstatically in nearly every garden, that I used to take them
for granted? And, is it because they are extensively hybridized that
they are often looked down upon, even, by the gardening elite? This
morning I took a walk in my neighborhood, my camera tucked into my
small cotton backpack. I was on a hunt for hot autumn color in the
trees, but what I found instead were dahlias. Yes, there was one maple
with brilliant red leaves, but the symmetry and vivid colors of these
blossoms won out as the natural spectacles du jour. Most of these
examples were clustered in one deep bed close to the curving road on
the crest of a rise, their faces looking brightly toward the east.
Today, the grey skies allowed my lens to capture the colors accurately.
After returning home, I remembered that about 20 years ago I did
some careful pen, ink & watercolor drawings of dahlias in a
sketchbook. I pulled that sketchbook from the shelf, scanned the page
(I recalled how long it took to draw those petals so that they were
true to the form), added notes and I have included it here.
Please click on the images for larger views.
By the breath of flowers thou callest us from city throngs and cares, back to the woods, the birds, the mountain streams that sing of thee~back to free childhood's heart, fresh with the dews of tenderness.
~Mrs. Hemans, as quoted by Lady Wilkinson, 1858
Jocelyn Curry 
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