Painting Negative Spaces with Hydrangea

I did a similar painting several months back.  It just kind of happened organically.  I didn't purposely go into thinking I would paint all the negative space around an object, but it kind of worked that way.  In this painting, I specifically set about trying to paint only the negative spaces.  I do with I had mixed in maybe a little purple or magenta with all the blue but I came out pretty neat.

Also, I think, that if I do this again, or maybe I'll go back and do it on this painting, that I'll incorporate some veins into the leaves.  I did put the button in the middle of these flowers, but that was all.  Perhaps a bit of veining will really bring this painting to the next level and give the leaves a little more texture and depth.

Well, regardless of whether I go back and do more or not, I had a great time painting this one.  I hope you enjoy the painting, and if you would like to watch it, I do have a video of how I did it.

 

More Hydrangea

Well, I wanted to paint hydrangea again.  I don't know why I like it so much.  Maybe it has to do with the huge hydrangea at the end of my driveway at the house I grew up in.  My brother and a I made a fort inside it, and we were able to stand up without obstruction.  That just shows how big it was.  Like I said, huge.

For this painting, I decided to embrace hard edges.  I've painted hydrangea before and kind of muddled all the edges and made it all soft.  I've been trying to accept that I cant always stop hard edges, so I jumped in and went for all the hard edges I could get.

After drawing my little clump of flowers, I thought it would be cool to paint all at the top level and make the paint drip.  Then walk away so that it dries.  Coming back when it was totally dry, I started on the next set of petals.  Painting right over the drips from the layer above, I didn't even try to erase the lines.  I just kept repeating that until I got to the bottom.

I learned a few interesting thing.  First and foremost, when you want your paint to run, you almost can't do it. secondly, the addition of water at just the right time will lighten just enough of your painting to give some cool effects.  Of course you might want to sop up the extra instead of forcing a run.

I was also hoping to limit my palette.  Something I am always trying to do.  In the effort,  I made it look awfully monotone.  I did actually find a way to use two colors.

Hope you enjoy it,   I sure did.  Thanks for the view.

More Hydrangea

In a quick painting session I had with my daughter, I painted a few hydrangea.  I didn't have long, as her attention span yesterday seemed to last only about 5 minutes on any one thing.

I actually got about 10 minutes out of her, but I was the one who had about 5 after getting paint, paper, water, and towel to paint with, then cleaning up after she was done.

Well, we did have a good time while it lasted.  Too bad it was such a short amount of time.

A Bit of Hydrangea

Here is a painting I was having fun with last night.  Its a bit of Hydrangea.  It looks similar to my other flower paintings with one real difference.  The petals on the top of this painting are painted in positive.  Then, I began to work my way down the paper and the petals on the bottom are completely in negative.

It's an interesting way to paint, and I think I'll keep trying this.

Also I was kinda painting this from memory, knowing that hydrangea are just 4 diamond shaped petals.  I didn't really know what the center of the flower looked like, so I dropped a little yellow in the middle.  Now I know that there is a little button in the middle of the 4 petals.  Hmmmm, well, I guess I have something to work on tonight.

Please feel free to leave a comment and let me know what you think, and thanks for taking the time to look.

Hydrangea and Cherry Blossom at lunch

Spring has definitely sprung in my little part of California.  Everything is green, everything is growing, most things are in bloom.  It hit 80 here today!

Continuing on with my new fun painting style, I decided to revisit my cherry blossoms, and add a hydrangea.  I chose a simple cherry blossom.  Simple rounded petals, 5 to each bloom.  As for the Hydrangea:  4 petals, each diamond shaped.  Simple, right?  What could go wrong.  As it turns out, quite a lot.  But since I am trying to loosen up, I made an attempt to let mistakes go by the wayside and incorporate them into the final painting.  I don't know if you will even be able to pick them out.  I think probably I can pick them out because I painted them.  And if I hadn't mentioned it you wouldn't even know there were any mistakes.

Glad you could stop by to take a look at the pictures.  Hope you enjoyed the.  I thoroughly enjoyed painting them.

Oh, and sorry the pictures have a slight blue tint.  I don't have my scanner with me right now, and am sorely missing it.