Spring flowers in watercolors - how to paint


Narcisi dal giardino, 2016 -38x56 cm fabiano 300gsm

Lately I have been concentrating on urban sketching and painting, but I usually love painting florals.
It's easy - they grow in my garden or I keep them on my table.
Earlier I painted realistic, even if not really botanical flowers, 
while I now prefer to simplify and catch the essence.
On the painting above you can notice a clear influence by the paintings of Jean Haines ;), 
only an impression of the flowers!


Floreale, 2016. 38x56 cm

I paint quite big, real size, which means that I often just  can't fit everything into the paper. 
That's one reason why I choose to paint only a part of them; 
the main reason is that I find it more dynamic and expressive as a composition.

This is how I proceed: 
I use a big brush, a lot of water and bright colors. 
Once the first wash is dry I will add darker details, little by little - trying not to overwork - 
this is the hardest part!
Then I leave it to rest, and some hours later, or even the next day I will see if I need to add something.
I some areas are too bright, I will use a glaze, often with a complementary color.

Thank you for reading,
Hope you enjoyed my spring flowers?!

2 comments:

  1. These are really beautiful! I can imagine how impressive they are full size. I like the fused colors and blended edges of the daffodils on the top one. Just enough realism to see the flowers, but leave plenty to imagination

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  2. Thank you, Blaga! That's exactly what I aim to do �� , and after seeing it on the photo I realized I needed to smooth down some shapes on the one below as well... Greetings from a sunny Tuscany!

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