Sometimes I feel they are like Pets...

If you start to paint plants every day you will end up asking your friend to keep an eye on the Cyclamen you have in the house: "If you see them fainting just put them outside, they might feel too hot here!". This is what I said to a girl after living the key through Airbnb! Then i realized it was a bit too much and I decided to leave the Cyclamens at the windowsill (there where new cats around... "they might eat them!")


I am in co. Kildare. The wind is blowing ferocious over the house and yesterday afternoon the snow covered the land for few minutes, until the sun came again.... Ireland is an unpredictable place.

Today I decided to paint a yellow Waterlily to try the shades of yellow.
I haven't done much work with this colour since last year and I forgot how hard it is.
I am not happy with it. The picture was very bright and my wash doesn't show the depth of the petals.  I decided to leave it because I didn't want to overwork adding heavy layers. I will paint it again another time.

Botanical greens are not easy to reproduce at the first glance... (it always take a while to start painting... first I have a look at my color chart or I make a new one.)
Two days ago I picked up some Ivy leaves in Donadea Forest Park. They have a simple shape to practice on...
Here is the result, but is not good enough for me. I am still struggling with the right colour, leaving the right space for the highlights and I am still not sure if i prefer "wet on wet" or "dry brush" technique... I use a mix of both but the fact that I don't know what to use explains that I need to practice more! Layers are a big question mark... I surely need more patience.

I love the positive energy that you can feel through the Botanical Art Facebook page.
Thank you all to share my thoughts and appreciate my work.