The grave was near Blinman, a tiny village in the Flinders Ranges, and the wreath really was in a cake tin. It was the wreath that I wanted to paint, but the shape of the overlapping tin was so irresistible that I used it, even though people came up to the painting at the exhibition opening and said, "O, look, a cake tin," which was irrelevant to the painting and implied some weird extra 'meaning'.

Unfortunately, the roses attached to the original wreath were bone white and made of some plastery material, which I struggled with for a while (white is extremely difficult to get right) before finding the faded fabric roses by a grave in Cambrai, just up the road from here.

Then I spent a very long time with my camera in the Mannum graveyard (and it was VERY hot) to emerge with the little plant holder. There were 3 flowers stuck in the ground to the right of the picture for a while, but as the roses strengthened they became unnecessary.