Lauri Waterfield Fine Art

Well, okay- I cheated just a bit, I'm posting this after the painting has been completed, so it's not "technically" a Work-In-Progress…..but doing it this way gives you a better view of the process. So- look over my shoulder…this will be a 9"x12" Oil on canvas-covered panel.

After my camping trip to the Craggy Gardens area, I've been flooded with ideas and images for new paintings and it's hard to settle on one. But this one of the wild Flame Azalea seems clearest in my mind, so I decided to start with it.

The original photo is one of those rare images that could stand alone as is:

But- it needs to be compressed a little to express the lushness that comes across in person, and to fit the 9"x12" format I've chosen. (I have a frame that will work beautifully with these colors) I pulled the original photo into Photoshop and cut and pasted and shifted the blossoms and leaves around until it all seemed to "click into place"…

I use a standard palette of warm & cool versions of the primaries plus Titanium White and Dioxazine Purple- notice there's no Black. I use Dioxazine Purple or Magenta to mix my darkest colors because I've found that using Ivory Black or Jet Black seems to kill the color, sucking the very life from it. By mixing your darker tones, you'll find the shadows have more vibrancy to them. And, if you'll notice- true Black and true White are rare in nature….

 I often tone my canvas, but I'm anxious to launch into this one, so I'm not even stopping to sketch first- I'll sketch directly on the canvas with my Cad Lemon. I'm using Odorless Mineral Spirits as a medium, and notice that my paint puddle is very "sloopy"- the consistency of heavy cream. This will help it to "set" fast enough that my brush won't lift the color as I work over it.

My palette and the sketch with my print out as reference:

Did you notice- even though I've worked with the layout, I decided to add a bit of curve to the branch on the right side as I sketched it in. I thought it needed just a bit more movement.

Starting with the background, I applied paint with no concern for detail, which would distract from the focus point- the blossoms. The background should just set the stage for the star of the show- the vibrant azaleas. I also don't completely mix my colors on the palette, which could result in a very flat rendering. My greens often have a ribbon of yellow or blue running through them. I work all across the background at once so neither side seems more blue or more green than the other. For consistency, each area of a painting should have at least a touch of all the colors, except the blossom colors. I want them to "pop" from the background, so keeping the oranges and reds out of the background tones will help achieve that separation.

 Ahh- the "Messy Stage"! I hate to pause work at this stage, because when I come back to the painting I always get that initial shock of "What was I thinking??" When viewers see this stage they're often just a little horrified- thankfully here in the South, they always manage to say something nice!

The background nearly complete, I began on the blossoms. I worked on them separately because I didn't want to muddy the clear, crisp blossom colors with the deeper, darker leaf colors. In fact, I completely wiped my palette clean to mix the oranges and yellows and picked up a couple of clean brushes.

Isn't it amazing how much life springs from the painting as soon as all the stamens are added to the blooms! Suddenly all those nondescript patches of color are defined as azaleas. At this point, I'm fairly sure the painting is complete, but to be sure, it will be placed on my mantle where I can "live with it" for a few days to see if it's missing anything or any adjustments need to be made.

The frame I had in mind works perfectly, its brown and gold tones nicely complementing the vivid flowers and echoing the woods beyond-

Flame Azalea

9"x12" Oil $525.00