The Sincerest Form of Flattery

The Sincerest Form of Flattery (from the series: Stigma & Style)

Last week in the foyer of a Marriott Hotel, I encountered an arrangement of fake orchids. They were made from silk and, it has to be said, silk flowers are far less offensive than plastic flowers. Silk is, after all, organic and has virtues of its own. As I felt the texture of the fake petals, I remembered how little they felt like the cheap plastic flowers that I encountered in shops as a child. A few days later I encountered these plastic flowers in a supermarket, hiding amongst real flowers that were far more beautiful if far more transient.

I grabbed my camera and framed them in the viewfinder, pretending that they were rare and expensive blooms that deserved to have their likeness preserved for posterity. “What genus are these,” I wondered, “Adapticus Plasticus?”