Jacksonville metal artist Cheryl Garcia is no stranger to creating alluring, larger-than-life metal flowers. Her famous poppies dotting the vineyards east of town may be seen on a daily basis by passerby’s as can her giant Fritillaria sculpture gracing the entrance to the Britt Festival grounds. This year, Cheryl has outdone herself with “Lavandula,” a giant lavender sculpture on permanent display at The English Lavender Farm.
The artist says, “No flower scent recalls such comfort and healing as lavender. The flower is complex and simply, quite beautifully, one of my favorites!”
Last year, Sue and Derek Owen, the owners of The English Lavender Farm in the Applegate Valley, asked Cheryl if she’d be willing to create a lavender sculpture for their property. “Of course I said, “Yes!” and began looking at the design challenge ahead of me to capture the complex yet understated essence of lavender.”
With blowtorch in-hand, Garcia got to work…the result is a magnificent piece of metal art. “As to the creative process, the solution came to me from my childhood,” Cheryl notes. “I adored watching my mom make sweet bundles and sachets of lavender straight from the garden…I’d sit with her and create small bundles of lavender tied together with raffia ribbon.” It was those moments that served as the artist’s inspiration for a simplified, yet powerful lavender sculpture.
“Lavandula” depicts a tied bundle of lavender flowers and stands 11 feet tall, weighing in excess of 400 pounds. Set against a backdrop of a lavender farm, come experience Cheryl’s art for yourself at The English Lavender Farm at 8040 Thompson Creek Road in the Applegate.