Poppies in Disguise

I finally finished the first "poppy" painting, not that you'd recognise it!  The second one I'm afraid is definitely a lost cause.  However, I am really pleased with this one.  I like the way the flowers are just bursting as if they are about to drop all their petals. I also think the colours, finally, work well together something that I struggled to get right for hours and hours.  It will be available to buy in Jane Packer New York (just as soon as my work permit appears!)

Overbloomed 10x30

Poppies

I have been wanting to paint poppies for absolutely ages, I have no idea why. But it seemed appropriate as I am now working on a series of flower paintings for Jane Packer New York.  So, I started two paintings, both of which I strongly disliked after the initial underpainting. These images show the first one as it started and at various stages of how it has changed. It wasn't working, so I decided to add other flowers to the poppies and darken the background but that didn't work either! However, once I returned to a lighter background, changing the colour palette and rearranged some of the flowers I think it is starting to come together. I am aiming for an impressionist feel with this painting, I don't want it to look too structured, however, as I am used to working from life or photographs, I am finding working from my imagination pretty challenging.