Peony Season

8"X10" Oil on canvas

Today is Drawing Day, this will be my contribution. It was only after I started it that I remembered that I painted a peony for Drawing Day last year. I guess that is what happens when you have Drawing Day on the first Saturday in June. My peonies started to flower on Monday and they are almost finished today. I was worried that I wouldn't get to paint them at all.

I seem to spend an inordinate amount of time mixing greens, there really aren't any tube greens that are useful for grass or foliage. Sap Green isn't bad, apparently it was originally made from buckthorn berries but now is usually a blend incorporating the ubiquitous Phthalocyanine green. Otherwise I am using mixes of siennas, umbers, white, yellow and various blues. I love Terre Verte but it is very transparent and limited in its usefulness.

I am always surprised by how much flowers move after you cut them. They really don't qualify as absolutely still life. I found myself wanting to make corrections in the position of the petals and the leaves but then realizing that I would have to completely redo the whole thing. It is hard to know when to stop.