Issue No. 27 of MASCULAR Magazine was about FLORA. ​ Swiss Architect Peter Zumthor (A MASCULAR favorite) said “My relationship to plants becomes closer and closer. They make me quiet; I like to be in their company.” He speaks of plants like they are people, companions, even friends. Do you like plants? How about trees? Flowers? Perhaps you have a garden you are very proud of or grew up in one that helped foster your sense of adventure. Maybe yours is a concrete jungle. Or for you, floral means the Jasmine perfume your mother use to wear? It’s pretty much universally acknowledged that plants and gardens and all things green and floral are beautiful. Is that premise true for you? Roses are for love. Lilies symbolise chastity and virtue… and death. Orchids have an erotic look to them and are often found in hotels and offices. Advertisers use verdant settings with trees and grass to evoke freshness. But in times gone by, the forest was seen as a dangerous place, not the lungs of the forest. As artists, we have always been fascinated by flowers – their fragility and transience hide the true power of their nature. While a forest fire strikes us as a huge calamity.