Poppies in the Fall

A project of remembrance

Poppies have played a role in my life since I was old enough to remember my first Remembrance Day ceremony in elementary school. Since then, those bright red, flocked plastic poppies have held a special place in my heart.

They are a fleeting thing. Seen first on November 1st on counters across the country. Worn proudly until the 11th hour of the 11th day on the 11th month when they are left on cenotaphs, memorials and gravestones throughout the British Commonwealth. I will always wear that little piece of plastic and buy one each year.

That said, I have often thought that something more tangible – beautiful even – and permanent would be a more appropriate marker for veterans.

This morning, the family got together at Valley View Cemetery for the moment of silence at 11am and to leave these tokens as our thanks.

I learned about the various colours of patina that copper was able to achieve with different chemical treatments. Blue, green, aqua and surprisingly enough, red! When heated coper is quenched in a solution of boric acid (Borax) and water, the coper is coated in a smooth dark red colour. Outstanding! The right colour, the right amount of permanence and some beauty thrown in for good measure!

Patterns are cut out of sheet copper and are textured with the narrow end of a light cross peen hammer. The texturing serves two purposes: to create a pattern more interesting and organic than flat sheet and to thin and define the edge of each petal.

Texturing of the pistil was accomplished with a round punch. this is purely to give some definition to the center. Following texturing, the pistil was rounded with a dapping block and punch to match.

From there, assembly! A little borax flux, a little silver solder and there you have it! Quenching the assembled poppy in the borax solution after each annealing built up the layers of colour. Some turned out much better than others, but with some repetition, I think they all turned out great! After I got the colour I was looking for, I scrubbed off any of the patina from the pistil and blackened the raw copper with a solution of liver of sulfur (potassium sulfide) and water.