Orchids

Oils on Canvas board 16" x 12"

Sorry about the glare on this one, I will try to get a better photo soon.  Orchids are so elegant and beautiful they called to me to paint them.  I just wish I could do them justice, but "never give up" is my motto and therefore I will be attempting another painting soon.

I may even go back to work on this one too.  It was not easy, but then nothing good ever is.  I will stand it where I can see it and let my mind work out what needs to be done.

Time spent thinking and dreaming is never time wasted.

Geraniums

Oils on canvas board 16" x 12"

Today was the first time in such a long time that I made time to paint. It was an amazing feeling being back at the easel, smelling those glorious smells that come with painting in oils and just forgetting everything else but the process.

It's just a start, nothing fab, but I love it anyway partly because it is the first in too long a time and secondly, because geraniums always remind me of my childhood when my dad enjoyed growing them and always of course in terracotta pots.

I hope this is the beginning of my return to painting.  I have missed it so much.

Poor Poinsettia

15 min study watersoluble pencils on 12" x 9" watercolour paper.

As it's leaves fall on an almost daily basis the poor poinsettia begins to look rather sparse, but even so, the crimson bracts retain their beauty and lift my spirits.

I am not the best person to own a houseplant, it's very rare that they survive. I often forget to water them and when I remember I overdo it... killing them with kindness.

Anyway, it's interesting artistically because they are constantly changing (shape & colour, as they die).

Leaf Me Alone

9" x 6" Watercolour on wc paper - 15 min

A lone Poinsettia leaf.

Feeling rather lonesome when others do not move in the same direction, take comfort for with independence comes strength and clarity of purpose.

A difficult day but the beauty of the Poinsettia lifted my heart.

Dying Rose

40 mins watersoluble pencil on 140lb cold pressed watercolour paper 12" x 9".

The Dying Rose

Even as she dies she presents a vision of beauty and only one part of the plant perishes... soon another sweet fragranced head will awaken to brighten our tomorrow.