Corpse Flower

The "Corpse Flower" painting is a memento mori upon reaching a significant birthday.  The corpse flower grows wild in Indonesia and can reach 7' tall.  It flowers only every few years, gives off the smell of rotting flesh and is the color of raw meat when it is in full bloom.  I saw one as it was closing up and no longer had an odor in the Smith College conservatory near my home 2 years ago, sketched it and couldn't get it out of my mind.  It looked to me like a beautiful Fortuny silk gown and something I'd want to wear.  So, the image is full of many layers of meaning for me.  Its botanical name is titan aram or amorphophallus titanum.