posted on 30 Nov 2020

Flower Power: The magic of nature’s healers illustrated by Olaf Hajek with text by Christine Paxmann

The healing power of plants and the history of their use has inspired plenty of lavishly illustrated botanical guides over recent years but this glorious, illustrated large format book is aimed squarely at younger readers – and what a spectacular success it is too!

Translated from the original German, the text for each flower is provided by Christine Paxmann and is a well-judged, pretty concise and always interesting mini-biography of the plant’s role in medical history. There are seventeen flowers profiled from the very well-known Dandelion to the somewhat less famous Mary Thistle and the Bellflower.

But excellent as the text is, it is inevitably the illustrations of artist Olaf Hajek that take centre stage. Hajek’s own website provides this admirably precise mini-portrait of his illustrative style:

“A technically perfect illustrator, he creates enchanting visual patterns, scenes and creative characters in which nature and artifice are intertwined. Olaf collects mental images everywhere he goes: on his travels, in magazines, or on the internet. African traditions, Indian temple art, South American folklore, and pop culture are all expressed in new ways in his almost surreal tableaux.He plays with motifs of flora and fauna, archaic symbols and current themes, working them all into his pieces in great detail and vibrant colour.”

To underline the central importance of the drawings to this book, Hajek is given top billing on the front cover and his own showcase at the end entitled ‘Olaf and his plant tales’ in which we are told:

“When Olaf was a child he used to love ‘Florilegia’ - books  that contain real flowers, buds, pods, seeds, roots, leaves. It was great preparation for this volume….Olaf’s plant pictures can make you feel happy. You can also imagine going for a walk in them, and you can think up stories and follow your imagination.”

That last sentiment is exactly right. The drawings are extraordinary and detailed – however often you look at them there is always something new to find.

As is always true with these compendium books everyone will have their own favourites and naturally enough I have mine. I especially like the drawing for the Madonna Lily which shows a woman riding the back of a lion astride a carnival horse and the entry for the Marigold is strikingly serene.

If your local independent book shop doesn’t have a copy in stock (why ever not?!), they should be able to order a copy for you.  The book can, of course, be ordered easily enough from the internet but why not give your business to your local shop?

 

Terry Potter

December 2020