The Peony Collection
*Scroll to the bottom to see a preview of The Peony Collection paintings.
I watched my grandmother’s house burn and felt the hot sting of tears well up in my eyes. It caught me by surprise even though I’d known the day was coming for at least a year. The finality of it all took my breath away. My brother texted me… “Hey, is Nina’s house okay? Did it get struck by lightning?” My sweet sister-in-law spotted the video of the house going up in flames on social media.
I knew it wasn’t an accident although the dramatic end was still more than I anticipated.
Nina’s home was burned because it was condemned. It was full of mold from a leak in the basement left unchecked for decades. What my grandparents neglected in terms of home repair, they made up for in copious amount of love that still reverberates through our family. My grandmother’s wedding portrait hangs where I can see it from my kitchen and my computer screen. I love that she’s still here with me- I can see her every time I look up, but I probably don’t need the picture for that.
I lived in Nina’s house until I was four.
Creeeeaaaaak, SLAM!
The percussion of my childhood was the unlocked screen door slamming after us as cousins ran into her kitchen. My grandparent’s house was the most beautiful home not because it was perfect, but because it was full of the most unconditional love anyone will ever know here on Earth. I am grateful it was part of my story.
My grandmother passed away the same year my son was born. Miles was four months old when Nina was beckoned by angels. She tried valiantly to fight an aneurism… twice. Her second stay in the ICU after her second emergency surgery was more than her fragile body would allow. The fight she had to stay alive surprised me- it still makes me fiercely proud.
I am so grateful to have one picture of four generations of us together. Me, my mom, my grandmother and my precious son were all together in one beautiful moment before her health really started to decline.
Peonies. They weren’t her favorite flower, but they are mine. Nina didn’t grow peonies to my knowledge, but my grandmother Wall did. I received a plant that was hers last year and I placed it in my garden during the pandemic. That peony hasn’t bloomed yet, but the flowers that I dug up from Nina’s house sure did. The daffodils and irises came right on out this year and whispered hello to me with such sunny dispositions. It brought me a smile to bear witness to their resilience and peace to know that our yard- my yard- felt like home again.
The Peony Collection is a group of paintings celebrating the resiliency of generations. For me, peonies have the most grand sense of nostalgia and a simultaneous promise of good things to come. I’ve been told they can bloom for 100 years once established. Likewise, you can break off a piece of their roots, transplant it somewhere else and the 100 year cycle continues. I love that. It reminds me of generations of mothers, daughters and grandmothers all rising again every season, ready to bloom and celebrate exuberantly, ridiculously— the exact place where we are—in life—and in time—regardless of what is currently burning in the world.
My palette choice highlights the unapologetic exuberance of peony blooms but the real message is one of resiliency as our families rise again from the obstacles of this past pandemic year. I hope you love this collection as much as I do. The paintings are utterly gorgeous and I can’t wait for you to see them all together!
The Peony Collection will be available on Thursday, June 17 at 10 a.m. to Studio Insiders and at 12 p.m. to the public.
With gratitude,
Katie
