Sun-Kissed Petals and Green Stems
Temporary guests that give more than they receive, flower bouquets radiate a vitality, a life force. A bunch of blooms express nature’s bounty and fleeting beauty.
The 10 illustrations in the Sun-Kissed Petals and Green Stem series pay homage to gifts of flowers. Each little garden in a vase captures a celebration of good times shared.
MY PAINTING PROCESS
I start an illustration by getting an overall impression of the bouquet rather than focusing on the individual blooms. Details and patterns in petals, leaves and stems get distilled before advancing into a map of shapes.
Organic patterns — knobby branches, undulating leaves, and ruffled flowers — are points of departure. I select a few key elements for greatest impact. My focus is simplicity.
The first step in my painting process is to dip a sable brush with a long-pointed tip into a glass jar of India ink. The carbon black color made from ash is the oldest pigment on earth.
Usually, I paint with a specific color scheme in mind. An emotion, a palette I’d like to explore, recently referenced artwork, or a concentration of hues in the floral still life influence my color choices.
INTUITION IS A GUIDE
I paint intuitively, attuning to the energy flow of the flowers. Direct observation provides an energy exchange. By removing details, I reduce complexity to compressed suggestiveness.
Simple, sure gestures interpret the lyricism of the organic shapes. Forms rise, fold and unfurl in inventive expression. Strokes provide a rolling cadence of rhythms through repetition, shapes, hues and line direction.
A flatland of lines becomes geography, with the addition of layers of fluid watercolor washes and chalky pastels. Fluid, gestural marks emphasize the flower’s individual characteristics. Each painting branches and flowers into a condensed poem.
INSPIRATION FOR THE SERIES
Eulonia and Golden Moment
Cubist-inspired Eulonia and Golden Moment, dominated by circular shapes, feature the warm-hued yellows and oranges of Autumn leaves before they crumble and fade.
Folding Leaves and Caritas
Folding Leaves depicts a canopy of sails, and Caritas is a high rise of tiny petticoats.
Coy and Blushing
Vibrant-hued Coy and Blushing personify femininity and voluptuousness.
Floweret and Bogalusa
The not-to-be contained Floweret depicts a fragmented and abstracted arrangement. Bogalusa, it’s flowers like lanterns, evoke an overall mood of breeziness and sensuousness.
Opelika and Sunny South
Opelika and Sunny South reference the lively, saturated colors and simplified forms of Fauvism artworks.
LIVING IN THE MOMENT
The Sun-Kissed Petals and Green Stems series is recognition of evanescent moments of beauty, grace and celebration. The elemental simplicity of the artwork provides a balm for the soul and a reminder of the resilience, adaptation, and patience of nature.