Handpicked at Kettle's Yard: Flower Paintings Burst with Human Emotion

The exhibition 'Handpicked' at Kettle's Yard in Cambridge brings together over 40 artists from the early 20th century to the present, all sharing a focus on flower painting. The show is inspired by the fresh cut flowers and floral artworks in the neighboring house. A standout piece is Rory McEwen's watercolor 'Tulip (Helen Josephine)', which the reviewer describes as exquisitely detailed, with velvety petals and a taste of strawberries and cream. McEwen, who had a lifelong passion for plants, painted from life using a pen knife or scalpel and surgeon's spectacles for fine details. The exhibition reveals intensely human stories of love, loss, and jealousy-ridden break-ups, challenging the notion that flower paintings are stuffy.