"Pink Rose of Sharon" (oil on linen; 5" x 4") sold

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I painted flowers that looked just like the rose of sharon back in July and boldly titled the painting as such.  Guess what?  I was wrong.  A Faccbook friend corrected me; another friend confirmed my error.  Isn't that great?  By the way, the rose of sharon is the Korean national flower.  I don't know why my countrymen picked the flower, but there it is.

"Pink Hollyhocks" (watercolor on Yupo, 10" x 8"; 150)
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On a personal note, I have been absent from my studio for the past three days on account of my daughter's marching band activities.  As my husband and I volunteer as the pit crew and in other capacities, we were busy helping the band for most of the weekend.  I am glad that the marching season is almost over, so that I can get back to my daily painting routine!

"Pink Phlox" (oil on linen; 8" x 10") sold

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Yesterday morning, I took a walk at the Green Spring Gardens Park in Alexandria, VA. It has been crazy busy this year, so it was my first visit to the park.  Ah, I could breathe deeply.  I wish you were there with me.  It was sunny and mild.  There were just a few people around.  We all smiled and said good morning to each other.

For someone who likes to paint flowers, spring can be exhausting.  Flowers come upon each other like torrential rain.  How do I keep up with them?  The secret to the true enjoyment of this vernal floral glory is letting go.  I can't paint them all.  Enjoy the sunshine and breeze; bring some flowers inside and put them in a pretty vase; above all, don't forget to smell their enchanting fragrance.  If I miss some, there will be always another spring.

The rock garden in full bloom; from this angle, one can see both the gazebo and Manor House.

Spring wildflowers along the Virginia native plant trail

Holmes Run runs through the park.

A fake great blue heron at the pond

"Late Roses" (oil on linen; 10" x 8") sold

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I have been avoiding the reference photo for "Late Roses" since I took it last November.  I was into painting fall colors and snow scenes.  But there was another reason for my dillydallying.  It seemed like a lot of drawing to get the flowers right.  After the figure painting workshop last week, however, I suddenly felt like painting them. 

And I was right about my gut feeling.  Everything is relative.  Compared with the drawing and color mixing involved in a figure painting, it was nothing.  Of course, one has to get the gesture and color temperature of each flower just so.  But there is a lot more room for error in flower painting, to my relief.

I consider "Late Roses" a still life, although it wasn't set up on a table top, but in a natural setting.  An arrangement of a limited number of objects and a close look at them.  Isn't that a still life?  I suppose one could also call it an intimate landscape.

"Red and Green Apples" (oil, 11" x 14")
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Speaking of still lifes, I started taking a still life class with John Murray at the Art League School.  The first class met yesterday, during which I painted "Red and Green Apples."  Doesn't it look quite different from my usual stuff?  I loved the way John did the quick demo with a big brush, dipping into the huge piles of paints on his palette.  Bold colors and brushstrokes!  A great departure from what I experienced last week during the workshop with Stephen Early.  Check out his website to see his paintings, then you will know what I am wowing about.

John said, however, the same thing about the way I handled the shadows, as Stephen did, despite their different styles.  I see too many colors and end up fragmenting a dark value shape.  Interesting, isn't it?   Styles may vary, but the fundamentals in painting remain true.  I hope to learn much from my new teacher.  How exciting!