Harry Zelenko spent much of his life growing and painting orchids. He was a New Yorker who moved to Ecuador 25 years ago, and was profiled for his orchid obsession in publications such as Interview, The New York Times, Martha Stewart Living, and more. He was also a character in the best-selling book, “The Orchid Thief,” and a judge at the New York International Orchid Show. As an orchid “celebrity,” he was flown to orchid conferences to speak all over the world — from Sweden to Kuala Lumpur. He even has a flower named after him.
A must-have for an orchid lover’s book collection is the acclaimed “Orchids: The Pictorial Encyclopedia of Oncidium,” which features over 800 illustrations by Zelenko and was edited by Mark W. Chase of London’s Royal Botanic Gardens. The book is unique in showing actual-size plants and flowers meticulously painted in authentic, life-like color by expert botanical illustrators.
A 30″ x 30″ scarf based on Zelenko’s paintings in the book is made from Italian silk with a hand-stitched edge.
Climbing mountains, hiking through rainforests, Zelenko collected thousands of orchids from nearly every corner of the world and identified each specimen. The Orchid scarf brings the magnificent illustrations of the book off the printed page and into real life, essentially as wearable art.
Pair with the book for a memorable gift or just to get your own orchid fix. A gift set featuring both the book and the scarf is available for $275.