I have several friendly lilac bushes that I enjoy visiting during the lilac season. Some were out of sorts this year but I was super lucky to find some new ones - and one of them was white!
When I was growing up in Ukraine, there were two complementary theories about lilacs. One was that lilacs love when you break the branches and not cut them. And another was that lilacs grow much better if someone steals some from the bush. I do not remember ever buying lilacs. My grandmother had a white lilac bush with a lovely fragrance and my other grandmother loved purple lilacs so May was a month filled with large bouquets of lilacs brought by various family members. I liked painting them and how they worked in a glass jar or intricate vase and in general how wide these bouquets were, how they commanded the space!
Later I learned about a third lilac-related theory: if you ever find a 5-petaled lilac flower you should make a wish and eat it. These days I diligently start looking for an odd-petaled flower but usually quickly get lost in trying to see all the colors and decipher all the shapes.
I feel like lilac painting can always be better - but I think this was a satisfying experiment in losing control with very watery gouache and some creamy application too, a bit of finger painting, and some search for colors in white. I see that I enjoyed looking for the light and finding edges. And will try to paint lilacs next season again!
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