Art is in bloom at Baltimore's Walters Art Museum. And so are the flowers.
Three dozen members of local garden clubs have been asked again this year to interpret art on display in the gallery through floral arrangements, and the results will be on display this weekend - and admission is free.
The floral arrangers were asked to take their inspiration from the Japanese cloisonne exhibit currently on display, courtesy of Baltimore collector Stephen W. Fisher.
The pieces are inspired by nature, so the synergy is complete.
Gay Legg, a member of the Saint George's Garden Club out of Northwest Baltimore, has contributed arrangements to this fund-raising effort for nearly half of its 21 years.
(For more pictures from previous Art Blooms exhibits, go to the Walter's Flickr collection.)
"Every year, the Walters seems to come up with an amazing set of designers who do just beautful work," she said.
After learning about the cloisonne technique, which involves creating designs from nature using thin gold wire and then coloring those designs with layers of glass, Legg said she decided to create wire flowers in her design this year.
But there are real flowers, too!
"You can do whatever you want to interpret the art," she said. "But the flowers have to be really beautiful. After all, the flowers are sitting next to works of art."
Art Blooms, a presentation of the Women's Committee of the Walters, is on display today through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free. There are lectures and docent-led tours as well.