Spring Romps with Flower Power

I really enjoy any chance I have to be outside spending time with friends and my little boy in the spring. New to us this year is our Tues. & Thurs. soccer nights. Never a sports enthusiast I secretly thought I'd be skipping these and letting Jeremy take Jasper. But as each opportunity comes around I can't resist the thought of sitting outside in the lovely weather and just doing nothing but watching my cute little orange shirted number 6 run around with his friends. The coach is a gem too. It can't be easy teaching 4 yr olds the sport, but he obviously loves it and is making a game of the experience for them. Jasper loves it!

OK- Now I have to admit that the reason for that whole intro paragraph was just so I could use the soccer photo(Shameful!). I love the bright orange and yellow. The colors work perfectly with the work in progress I've been sharing with you.
Here's the update on that piece: I defined the pot a bit more by adding some highlights and contours. I also grounded the piece by suggesting a surface area beneath the pot. Then I worked a bit more on the leaves, adding some viridian green and a bit of interference green-orange to define the high and low lights within the local color. Of course I couldn't resist mixing my media a teeny tiny teensy little bit and grabbed my sky blue neocolor aquapastel and scrubbed in a bit here and there. I really like how the light blue pops against the oranges and greens in the piece. I feel like it could use a little bit of purple yet but other than that and the urge to write in some text (which I'm fighting for once) I think it's done.

I don't know if you do this, but as an artist I fall in love with bits of things all the time. It could be that new blue/brown combo, polka dots, birds, or a certain shade of blue. Sometimes it's a medium like the aqua pastels or the stitching and then for awhile I want to use that one thing in EVERYTHING I do. I have to fight the urge otherwise EVERYTHING I do ends up looking fairly similar. From decades of experience with this slightly fanatical and obsessive edge to my creative process I've come to the realization that other people get sick of seeing me repeat myself long before I do too. My mom still groans when she tells me of the year I drew nothing but elaborately ruffled princess gowns. Or the year I spent most days after school covering her blackboard with Cloud Cities(think Star Wars). I had swimming pools, escalators, and huge shopping complexes. In high school and early college I did waterfalls. Nothing but waterfalls. Flowers have always been the filler for me. The imagery I return to whenever I'm in flux.

But enough soul baring for tonight. :) Here's the flower painting....