A floral garden painting. Step by step.

I have just completed a floral garden painting, in acrylics on canvas. This is inspired by the lovely tangles of flowers growing out in my back garden, It was a pleasure to sit outside in the sunshine, and just paint what was there. Sometimes inspiration for a painting is literally just where you are. I usually work from photographs, so this made a nice change.

Here is the finished painting, and below that, step by step, how I created it !

First of all I painted some stripes on my canvas. This was to break up the surface in to sections.It roughly resembles sky and earth...but only just!!!

Next I divided this in to zones. at the top is the sky area and below layers of mud and simple vegetation!!  I appreciate at this stage it may not be too obvious what is going on here!  I added some dots to give texture.

After this I tried to make the background more varied and interesting. I added a garden wall at the back, and a bush, plus some more detail in the foreground vegetation. I am using a range of different acrylic paints as this is just the back of the design. Most of this will get covered up.

Now I add more detail. I have added a few patches of foliage on the mud section in the middle. I have altered the colours a bit over the whole painting. Lots of layers of dots!

Following this, it is time for some foreground plants. I was working outside, so just copied some leaves from a selection of plants in my own back garden. I painted these directly, without drawing the outlines first. I did not want pencil marks ruining the surface. 

Next I put in some simple flower heads, and work some other layers of greens in to the leaves. I am now using better quality acrylic paints, as I come towards the top surfaces of the painting. I am working with a range of brushes from size 1 to 4.

It is now time for greater detail in the flowers. I also add some thin dark green stalks across the whole painting.

Following this, I add some small white flowers to the stalks. You are starting to feel the layered effect of this painting now.

I next add in a layer of bright pink flowers. Again just copied from something growing in-front of me. This is why painting outdoors is so good!!

After this I complete the painting, by adding in some small blue flowers at the front. This balances the blue sky at the top.  I do a few minor changes here and there....and its done!!

I painted the same picture over the sides initially, but changed my mind and painted the sides paynes grey, which is almost black . It was just too fussy with the sides the same as the front!

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