Carnations in Watercolour

Carnations in a  Watercolour Composition

Winsor and Newton Alizarin Crimson,Cadmium Yellow, French Ultramarine Blue  and a tiny touch of Perylene Maroon for the inner shadow work.

Artists Tip: I use Winsor and Newton Watercolours because their formulation is perfect  for my layering technique.

I have had a delightful studio day.The treasures I found at the florist in the village yesterday afternoon have been an endless source of motivation to keep moving my brushes before the pretty flowers wilt and die. I see painting floral compositions from life very much like painting moving subjects outside. You really do have to be quick to catch the light, shadows and freshness of each blossom before they begin to lose their form. I could never paint anything like this from a photograph and eagerly urge new artists to forget learning from images. Working from life is a far more exciting way to paint!

Working without a preliminary sketch leads me to so many possibilities. I can add flowers and buds as I feel my painting needs them during the creative process.This painting looks fabulous in real life but I may add more detail to the disappearing flowers on the right hand side.

I have no less than four paintings of carnations on the go. Each very unique and it is hard to  choose a favourite piece at the moment. The really abstract one is looking very intriguing.

Of course,as always, there is a favourite section within my main painting. I love how the petals here were delghtful to paint, falling in different directions within the main centre of this flower.

Gorgeous close up of one particularly beautiful flower within the main painting.

There is a section in my new book on this technique describing how to paint hollyhocks and  carnations.But this technique also lends itself to Camelia ,Rhodedendron and many other flowers.

It is going to be a great floral year!

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