Getting back to bird of paradise paintings... I worked more on enriching the color and deepen the value of the petals, wetting adjacent areas carefully so that thick colors already laid down in these areas are not disturbed...
Petal Light #2, Watercolor on Arches 140# Cold Press Paper, 8"h x 10"w, WIP 4
To get the thick, organic feeling of the petals I try to maintain the darker shadow shapes soft and irregular in shape, and lifted small white passages at the edge of petals to indicate its thickness. The stamen is much darker in the photo, but I think I like the highly saturated purple-blue color I have right now, which makes them nice contrast to the orange petals, and serve as the center of attention, so I decide not to darken them further -- in the end, the reference photo is merely a starting point; a painting needs to stand on its own merit and will only be judged by itself, instead of being compared to the reference material for its "truthfulness"...
Petal Light #2, Watercolor on Arches 140# Cold Press Paper, 8"h x 10"w, WIP 5
It's so close to finish -- now the challenge is how to darken the background while integrating it with the flower. Merely wetting the background and dropping in dark colors will not do it -- it will leave a hard dark edge surround the flower, making it look flat and cut-out. I need to carefully consider my strategy here -- until then, my friends, please be patient with me...
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