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| Knock Out oil/canvas 12 x 9 x 1.5 |
every summer I manage to complete a couple of florals. I don't believe that any subject matter is quite as complex...they teach the artist about convex/concave; slight variations on the warm/cool temperature gauge; and prioritization supreme. One of the reasons why florals do not call to me is indeed those very complex forms....with that kind of detail, things must be rendered pretty true-to-life in order to be understandable. Painting them is an exercise that stretches me and takes me out of my comfort zone. My preference for larger simpler forms allows for a more creative and expressive use of paint. OK. My own like-to-dislike scale of bouquets would be: random bouquet without container laying on a surface; followed by monochromatic simple blooms in a clear simple vase. The scenarios continue downhill from here: multi-colored bouquets; patterned vases that demand attention; and classical bouquets that appear to have been sprayed with hair spray. That being said, this bouquet of knockout roses caught my eye. Knockouts are a recent addition to the rose family....they are easy to grow, disease and deer resistant; heat tolerant; and have a generous bloom cycle. AND THEY HAVE SIMPLE BLOOMS.
"Knockout" was painted a couple of weeks ago, after my exposure to these glorious blooms. Will I grow them? Probably not. Will I paint them? Just did.
Flowers are cheerful. That plop of color would be welcome on any wall.
