My Hibiscus painting was not painted from the heart, or at least, not from the beginning. Its various iterations have been recorded on this blog but as I look at them all together I am reminded of the words of an art tutor who said that photographing paintings as they progress can be very rewarding.In this case my photos document why the heart is an essential component to pictures.
I love flowers, but painting a Hibiscus in a vase on a cloth just didn't do it for me. I knew right from the beginning that I was not inspired by my subject and I should have known better than to start the work in the first place. Perhaps I had been looking at too many 'fruit and flower paintings by old masters. It is odd how some paintings are quick to paint and 'work' immediately while others, like my Hibiscus, are never happy and glower at you from the corner demanding to be changed.
I have made changes to Hibiscus between other work which takes its inspiration from the Squirrel, work which may develop into a series. The first of the series painted itself fast and needed no retouching (photo soon). It was painted from the heart.
3 comments:
I love your flower paintings as you know yet I don't recognise this particular one as a hibiscus I am familiar with - perhaps I am thinking of the more open form but then it has been a while since I saw one at all!
Yes, Liz, the open forms are more common I think. This pink one is next to an evergreen tree at the back and the Hibiscus is a robust one with branches that grow high up into the tree, so there are lots of flowers very high up.
The people who planted this garden must have loved Hibiscus as there are six in the garden. They need water so they are not an ideal plant for here. I am planting Grevillias when less hardy plants leave spaces.
Correction - seven Hibiscus in the garden! Four alone along the narrow strip of garden inat the front.
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