The Art of Flower Town

I am ridiculously blessed in that I spend time with a lot of incredibly talented people. Authors, artists, actresses, magicians, musicians, apothecaries, metal- and glass-workers fill my world. I love that so much. Sometimes, I get even luckier, though, and am able to collaborate with an artist. That happened on The Art of Flower Town, which was inspired by "Charlotte and Daisy." I couldn't be more pleased with the results. The artist is Thomas Lamkin Jr., who also does incredible book covers for Line By Lion, photography and digital work for numerous special events, and has one of the keenest eyes I've seen. He's also pretty easy on the eyes, which makes working with him even more fun. You can find his work at www.tljonline.com. He was kind enough to talk with me about his work on this project, and you can read the interview below.



 So, what is "The Art of Flower Town?"

The Art of Flower Town is a series of digitally created images loosely based on the novel "Charlotte & Daisy". I say "loosely" because none of the images will be found directly described in the story; these are things happening just around the corner, or down the block, or later that night. Only one image comes straight from a scene in the novel - the windmills. I just couldn't resist that one.

I like the windmill scene a lot, too. It's one of my favorites. What inspired you to do this?

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  The inspiration comes from the book itself, and the author's energy while writing it. Being able to read portions of it, in process, as well as hear her describe the world around Charlotte's adventures, really made Flower Town feel real.Of course there are echoes of Flower Town in most major cities, and Louisville is no exception.
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  Can you tell us a bit about the process? Where did you get your images? How did you "create" Flower Town? 
• The pictures came from a blend of places. The original photography came from a photoshoot with the author in Downtown Louisville - it was supposed to just be exploration and looking for good locations and elements we could use. But then we kept finding perfect images, and the lighting was just right, and everything fell into place. Then I pulled elements from stock photography, or created details and effects digitally to complete the look and bring Flower Town into frame. I wanted each image to hint at even more going on off-screen.
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  Is there anything that you'd like to create that you haven't yet?
• I'd like to maybe do some images of the inner circles, the places that are sterile and uncomfortable to Charlotte because they've been stripped of life and energy in the name of control. The Cybers that are too pretty and always judgemental, the doctors with their noses against clipboards instead of seeing their patients, and the bright blue of halogen bulbs in every chrome hallway. Maybe even try some larger city views, or what it looks like between the circles. Or even outside the circles!
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  What was your favorite part? 
• My favorite part of the process was being able to collaborate with the author for each step. Her excitement about Charlotte and her world is infectious. It also has real-world applications, since this story is a wonderful way to give insight into the world of those close to us who are dealing with anxiety and depression and other forms of mental illness that are difficult to talk about. Here is a story, a work of fiction, that can open up conversations that need to be had. I like being able to help open up those lines of communication for people.
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  What else do you have planned?
• As for other projects, I have a couple of photoshoots that I am excited to work on with a set of models in interesting locations. One set will be an attempt at recreating folklore with a dash of fantasy elements or a twist on the expected. The other set is one we're calling "Domestic Goddesses" with some lovely ladies in pinup style clothes and glamorous makeup - doing the things they deal with every day that maybe aren't so glamorous. Of course I am always at my computer painting the images in my mind and trying to recreate a cover image from an author's mind.

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