Monday, October 31, 2011

Bougainvillea Mexicana

Here is it.  Can you believe it?  I actually did something I said I was going to do.  This is the watercolor version of the bougainvillea silk painting that I did last week.  Many times I say I'm going to do this painting or that painting and they never get posted.  That's because they never get painted.  I guess I have more ideas of what to paint than the motivation to paint them.  I get easily distracted by new ideas and the old ones just get forgotten.  I should probably write them down for those times that I can't think of anything to paint.

This is a large painting and I really had to work hard to finish it for today.  I fought with the paper the whole time.  It is on Arches 300# rough.  I'm not sure what I was thinking when I chose that paper for a floral.  Maybe because the wall was stucco I thought it would be a good choice.  I drew this and painted the background quite some time ago so I don't really remember my thought process.  Also, though I love the heavier papers, it is really hard to get some of the color mixtures and effects that I want.  I was hoping to paint the shadows with a looser, more watery feeling but didn't think I could get that with the heavier paper.  The edges were drying creepy (I mean creepy crawly, not creepy scary, even though it's Halloween)  instead of blurry like I wanted.   Also, when I floated the colors blends on the paper they looked beautiful but because the paper took so long to dry, the paints blended together too much and lost the effect that they had when they were wet so I was unhappy with that aspect of the painting too.  I had to do a lot more glazes to get the effect I wanted. That seems to happen on the 300# cold press paper too but the Arches 300# hot press seems very different in how it accepts the paint and is one of my favorite papers which is weird because I hate their 140# hot press.  That paper is very hard for me to work on because I like my paints to blend smoothly and that doesn't happen easily on the lighter weight hot press.  Maybe if I didn't wear my glasses while I paint I would relax and not worry about things like that because they would look blended.  : )

Anyway, enough about paper.  I'm sure those of you that aren't artists are yawning by now.  I'm really pretty happy with this painting even though I was cursing at it while I was working on it.  Maybe that helped.  I'm not sure what I'll paint next but it won't be flowers.  As much as I like them, I'm sick of them for now, especially pink flowers!

Bougainvillea Mexicana
Image size 22" x 30"
Watercolor

20 comments:

  1. Nancy, it's beautiful! I love bougainvilleas and particularly like the texture of the background and the depth of the flowers. Very well done!

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  2. This is just stunning!! Beautiful colors, and a lovely design.

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  3. This is stunning, Nancy! The cursing must have worked! I'm sad that you're taking a break from painting flowers, though, because I look forward to seeing your beautiful florals!

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  4. Un si beau travail de délicatesse mérite un grand "waou"!
    Je suis toute admirative devant votre oeuvre et j'apprécie énormément le souci du détail... Toutes vos lignes sont souples, très aérien...
    BEAU...
    Je vous félicite pour cette superbe aquarelle.
    Gros bisous

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  5. While not a super fan of florals, I have to say that this is right up there in my favorites, Nancy. This is really stunningly beautiful and I love the look of the bougainvillea against the stucco. A perfect marriage there. Truly glorious work and you know what? This just reminds me of you, for some reason. What I know of your work and your home from your posts and your letters/emails over the past couple of years. A real beauty in this piece!

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  6. this is absolutely stunning...

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  7. Thank you all for such glowing comments. You've made my day!

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  8. nancy, this is just beautiful! absolutely gorgeous! i pinched it and it's going in my inspiration folder, i love it!

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  9. Wow Suzanne, what a compliment! I'm so pleased that one of my paintings is an inspiration to you. I love your paintings.

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  10. Both paintings are beautiful, Nancy, and it's so interesting to see the same subject in different mediums. Your watercolor is absolutely stunning, love the way you handled the background.

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  11. Hi Nancy!... What a wonderfully bright... well designed...masterfully executed and colourful watercolour! A gem by any standard!

    Good Painting!
    Warmest regards,
    Bruce

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  12. Thank you Hilda, Robin and Bruce for such nice comments.

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  13. I'm busy scrolling back and forth between the two, and I think I like this one a bit better. The colors in the flowers are really awesome and you nailed the stucco look. Beautiful job!

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  14. Thanks Joan. I like this one better also. It has much more detail which is my preference.

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  15. This painting is just stunning! I can't tell that you had problems with the paper at all.
    As for all those painting ideas, it is nice to know that you will never be bored.

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  16. Thanks Leslie. I feel very lucky that I am indeed never bored.

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  17. Love this , Nancy. The wall texture is beautiful and the choice of fuchsia on soft sandy gold is a delicious combo.

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