The Story of a Tree

A few years ago I did a drawing of a Moreton Bay Fig in Vulture Street, West End. 

          The Fig - pen and ink on paper

This drawing was the inspiration for an abstract painting called Bark.

Bark I - oil on canvas 

You can imagine my disappointment and sense of loss when a year ago the tree had been hacked to a quarter of its size. Only the trunk remained - so very sad. 

Then last week I was in the neighbourhood once more. This time the tree was different. It was now a sculpture. The outer layers of bark had been used to encase a stainless steel structure. 

Fig Tree Sculpture - Vulture Street West End

So someone else felt the same as I did about this tree. They cared enough to transform the mutilated trunk into something beautiful.

Whoever you are - thank you. 

Flower paintings - Magnolias

I received a cryptic email from the organisers of the Rotary Art Spectacular 2016 saying:

“Congratulations, one or more of your entries has been selected for the exhibition. You will be notified of the details by the end of April.”

So I have at least one accepted painting.
This is the third flower painting completed recently and entered for the Exhibition.

Is this the one? Or is it Peony or Magnolia Diptych?

Which is your favourite?

Peony - exploring the complexity

                  

Work in progress - Damask Peony 

During the last few weeks I've been working on a few paintings and have used the same technique to transfer my original drawing to the canvas. This post Magnolia Diptych- tracking the process is where I discuss the technique.

Northside Flower Market in my area has the most enticing Instagram profile - it's loaded with stunning images of flowers. A few months ago, the exotic Peony was featured. I woke up a little late this year as the season was almost at an end. The first blooms I bought were deep magenta and the very last bunch of the season was this beautiful pink. The flower is extremely complex, with petal folded upon petal. In our hot climate the blooms don't last as long as they might in a cooler part of the world so I took a lot of photographs. Then I did a number of very loose quick sketches as well as some more detailed careful drawings. 
                   

My local Officeworks was the next place to visit where I had a large copy made of my original drawing. The plan print size is largest and for a few dollars you have a large copy of the drawing A0 - 841 mm x 1189 mm. This is so much easier than using a grid to enlarge the image. Once work was started on the flower, centrally and symmetrically placed, I decided to add the damask motif by means of a stencil. This allowed me to add new colours and provide a background to the central flower. 

As I worked slowly to develop the petals quite a lot of the drawing surrounding the painted area remained. The more I looked at the work in progress the more I liked the drawing contrasting with the petals rendered in a realistic manner. Sometimes every  "T" doesn't need to be crossed. I have therefore left many of these sketchy lines in the final painting.

 Damask Peony – oil on canvas 765mm x 765mm