Painting Gladioli and Rudbeckia , step by step

Here is a new painting based on two of my favourite flowers, Gladioli and Rudbeckia.  I have worked in acrylic and acrylic gouache. The style is bright and colourful.

Here is the finished painting, and then you can read about the stages of creating this ........   I will put a larger photo at the end.

I have worked on a long thin canvas.  I quite like this shape for floral paintings.  

My inspiration came from the flowers growing in my garden. I took several photos and put them together in Photoshop, to get a rough idea of the sort of painting I wanted to create.  As you can see, I did not tidy up the photos that much, as there is plenty of original background behind each flower. I added some blue to give a rough idea of background.

So now back to the actual painting. Firstly I covered the whole canvas with a very sketchy coat of blue acrylic. This is cheap acrylic, as most of it will be overpainted. I drew some of the outlines with pencil,  and then went over them with white paint, so I could actually see what I was doing!

After this, I started adding some additional colours with very basic shading. I have upgraded to a better quality paint now!

Next I repeated the process with the other two gladioli, and I started to add in some leaves.

Following this I worked in to the background, with lots of small dots and dabs of paint. I painted in the Rudbeckias a bit more, and started to think about light and shade on the leaves.

Next I added deep shading to the Gladioli leaves, and added a new leaf on the left side.  I also extended a few more of the existing leaves. However I felt the leaves overshadowed the flowers, so they needed to be changed!!  I also had not added any foliage for the rudbeckia, so needed contrast in the leaf area of the painting.

My next stage was to  soften down the shading on the gladioli leaves. I also started adding extra layers of shading and detail over the whole painting. I also added a small Rudbeckia bud on the left, along with a layer of Rudbeckia leaves.

The final stages involved working detail and shading into the new layer of leaves. I removed the Gladioli leaf from the left of the painting. I put masses of small detail into the flowers. This has been painted in my usual style of tiny dabs of paint.

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!

This is for sale on ArtFinder. Please use the link on the sidebar.

A painting of orchids. Step by step

A painting of orchids, step by step.

I have just completed a new painting of orchids.It is painted in acrylic paints on a wooden board support. It looks like a deep sided canvas, but is actually just wood. It was a nice surface to work on. 

Here is a small image of  the finished painting, followed by the stages I went through to create it. 

Firstly I painted my wooded board a deep pink. It had an old painting underneath, that I no longer wanted. I then did a rough outline of the orchids in white pastel.  You can still see a bit of the old painting, through this, but it won't matter!

Next I started to add a few basic colours. I have just used diluted acrylic paint. I wanted to separate the flowers from the background.

Following this I worked a bit more paint on to each flower. I wanted this to be about light and contrast as well as the flowers.

I then decided to change the background a bit, The light pink was put on to show the direction of the light coming in to the composition. However, I dont think this really worked, so it didn't last long!!   I continue to play around with the shades on each flower, and darken the stems and buds.

After this I really build up the contrast on both the background and the flowers. I try to put dark background against pale flowers and vice versa. I still wasn't too happy about the whole thing. In fact, I actually abandoned this for about 3 months before getting back to it. Sometimes that is the best thing to do with a painting, as you re approach it with fresh eyes and fresh ideas.

So after my break I came back and added blue to the background, I left enough of the previous background showing through to not lose all the light and shade though.  I use one of my favourite styles, which is a dotty pointillist style. I just love the way it breaks up the colours and adds such vibrancy to the paint surface.

I then work much more in to each individual flower.

This is the final painting. I have continued to develop each individual flower. I have exaggerated the contrast a bit more, and altered a few individual flower shapes. I have added more of the dotted surface on to the flowers as well as the background.

Orange Godetia painting

Here is a painting I did a few years ago.  It is based on some godetia flowers, growing in my garden. The original flowers are mainly pink. I changed them to orange shades, as this painting was always planned to hang in my living room, where orange and yellow colours work best.

It is done in acrylic, and the swirly style, in the background,  is influenced by Van Gogh .

Acrylic painting of 4 Irises. Step by step.

I have just completed a new painting. Yet again I have used irises as the subject matter!! I really do love painting irises!

Here is the finished painting, followed by step by step how I created it.

I have painted this in my favourite medium which is acrylics. I stared with regular acrylic and added detail with Chromacolour acrylic, as I progressed through the work. It is painted on canvas.

Firstly I drew a really rough outline of where I wanted the flowers to go. I like the cropped effect of them going over the edge. it breaks the background up into interesting shapes.

This was painted over a painting I gave up on. Hence the messy white paint background I used to cover the old one up. 

Next I isolated the flowers by painting a strong turquoise background. At this stage I am not sure if this will work as the final colour...but hey, it will do for now!

The next stage was to start painting in the flowers. I have done a lot of purple irises in other paintings, so was keen to try something different this time. I rarely use yellowy tones as I cannot get the contrast I get with deeper colours. So orange, red and brown would be needed to give definition and shade.

Following this I started working into the other 3 flowers...and yes, I have gone back to my favourite purple and white!!

I then added more foliage, and some buds. I also started to break the turquoise background up with a few other shades.  At this point I have decided to keep this sort of colour scheme for the background, but need to avoid it being flat.

Following this I work some contrast in to the flowers, especially the yellow one. I add dabs of paint to give some interest to the background. The swirly pattern also leads your eye around the painting.

My next stage is to add dark contrast areas to the yellow iris. Also to work a bit on the buds and stems.

I then deepen all the shading on the swirls in the background. I also work some fine details in to all the petals. On the yellow iris I introduce some lime green, and on the purple irises, some blue.

It is almost finished. I work in some smaller dabs of colour on the stems and buds. I put more white on to the purple irises. I do not want this to become too realistic. I want the pattern of the paint strokes to stylize the painting. I have to be careful not to over work it!!

At last the finished painting!!  A bit more contrast here and there. A bit more subtle change of colour work...and its done!!

This will be up for sale soon as prints, cards..... and at some point the original too. 

I will update this blog post with links to where you can buy the items .

A picture of an Iris, using paint and pencil crayon

I have just completed a picture of an Iris using mixed media. I used acrylic paint and pencil crayons. 

I used to use pencil crayons a lot but found they did not give the depth of colour I was looking for, or sharp enough contrasts.

My solution has been to do an under-painting in acrylic.  I use Chromacolour which is a very dense liquid paint. You can use it watered down to make a watercolour, or glazed effect too.

I used several different pencil crayons. However, they were mainly Caran Dache and Inktense, both crayons you can use wet or dry. I used both methods in the painting. Sometimes starting as a dry layer and adding water with a thin brush afterwards. Sometimes I just put the crayon in the water and used it wet. I then softened the edges with a brush.

So my first layer was paint, followed by shading and detailing over the top with pencil crayon. At the end I went back, here and there, with some more paint over the top. This was mainly white and pale yellow paint to increase areas of highlight.

The background is rough textured shading as a contrast to the flower.

I am quite pleased with the result, as I haven't used this method for awhile. I will probably improve as I practise the techniques..but, hey, you've got to start somewhere with art and its always great to watch your progress!

This may end up as a card design or a print. I may even sell the original !  Whatever I decide I will update here on the end of this posting.

Painting of Gladioli

Here is a recent painting, of Gladioli.  It was based on a photo I took last summer. It was taken in the evening when the plant was back-lit, showing off its colours to advantage.

I have done this as a mixed media work. most of it is acrylic paint, but I have added a final layer of detail with pencil crayon.

I shall update this here when this is available as prints and greetings cards.