Paulette Tavormina has long been drawn to the “Golden Age” of still-life painting and artists, Giovanna Garzoni, Francesco de Zurbarán, and Adriaen Coorte. She is particularly fascinated by Zurbarán’s mysterious use of dramatic light, Garzoni’s masterful compositions and color palette, and Coorte’s unique placement of objects. These artists of the 17th century witnessed an explosion of interest in the natural world through increased global trade in Europe. They incorporated shells, insects, exotic fruits, and flowers found abroad alongside Venetian glass and Chinese porcelain. The works spoke to universal themes as relevant then as now: the fragility of life and love, fleeting beauty and tempus fugit, the swift passage of time. 

Paulette Tavormina’s photographs capture theatrically lit flora, fauna, and foods. Her subjects are perfectly imperfect, and their relationships with one another create meaningful vignettes. Dutch Tulips and Goldfish, for example, is a cheerfully abundant composition depicting quintessentially Dutch flowers arranged organically in a glass bowl. A pair of fritillaria droop sweetly over the edge of the vase, just above two goldfish swimming together companionably. Most of the fruits and flowers in these works have been grown in the artist’s own garden and hold personal significance for Tavormina. Dahlias and peonies pay homage to past generations of her family who were avid gardeners, and the figs were grown from a cutting of her grandfather’s Sicilian fig tree. These and other tributes abound in the works, and through close looking, viewers can also find their own secret messages.

In creating her images, Tavormina often works against time, as newly plucked flowers begin to droop, fruit begins to rot, and the fleeting moment of perfectly arranged beauty passes. Insects are found throughout the works, hovering over flower petals or crawling over fruits, serving as a reminder of the interconnectedness and elegance in the natural world, even on the edge of decay. Beauty is ephemeral and difficult to find, and its human nature to seek it out. In Fiori del Giardino, Tavormina captures elements from nature, which is often wild, organic, and messy and elevates them into elegant compositions, capturing every intricate detail of an extraordinary moment in time.