"I must have flowers, always, and always." - Claude Monet
Pink Water Lilies
Work In Progress 12" x 16"
The red water lily painting I began the other day has now turned into pink water lilies. I will not leave them this rather "neon" pink look, but will refine the flowers with lighter and darker tones as I continue to paint. Also, I am not happy with the color of the lily pads. Much work needs to be done here.
It seemed fitting to do a post of flowers today, as it is still the first day of Spring here in Hawaii. Due to the time difference, it is already Saturday on most of the mainland except the West Coast.
As a child, I lived primarily with my grandparents (on my father's side) and my grandmother loved flowers. She also had a concrete pond with goldfish and water lilies. My young mind was more interested in the goldfish than the flowers. Even as a teenager I was not particularly overly interested in flowers, but when my husband and I bought our home in Massachusetts, I went absolutely wild with flowers in the yard. I planted various bulbs like tulips and crocus that would bloom in the Spring and I started many flowers from seed under lights in the winter to plant outside come sometime in May in Massachusetts. My grandfather had always had a vegetable garden when I was a child, and all of a sudden with my new home, I discovered an interest in vegetable gardening as well.
My point is, I now feel like Monet in the quote above : I must have flowers surrounding me. I do not have any water lilies, but I visit gardens and other areas here in Honolulu and Waikiki to photograph them and just to take in their beauty. Beauty, Light, and Color inspire me to paint.
