This is a close look at the beautiful Quesnelia lateralis.  This unusual Bromeliad makes vibrant red stems topped with sky-blue flowers that almost seem luminous!  The plant is found only in Brazil's Atlantic Forest, which is threatened with deforestation & urban expansion.  Fortunately it is easy to grow, tolerating a wide range of temperature and lighting.  It is pretty uncommon in cultivation and seldom seen for sale.

It grows to about 1½ feet tall, forming an attractive rosette of leaves, shaped somewhat like Aechmea.  The front of the leaves have a satiny sheen, and the back develop a silvery powder coating of trichomes, especially when grown in strong light.  The leaves are lined with small spines, but they're not usually bothersome.  

The flower spikes are about 1½ feet tall and can appear any time of year.  They usually emerge from outside the rosette - hence the name lateralis - but sometimes they appear from the center of the plant like most Bromeliads.  It blooms over a long period with several flower spikes, each with about a dozen inch-long blooms that emerge from the red bracts.  If grown in cooler conditions, the red stems & bracts keep their bright color for several months after flowering!  It multiplies readily with offsets, which you may separate.

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