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Red and Pink Roses

July 25, 2019 By: Paul8 Comments

Red and Pink Roses. Oil on Panel, 7 X 9.5 Inches

This painting is up for auction until July 27th.

Click here to bid

It’s always a challenge painting flowers.

And I’ll let you into a little secret that has been kept just between me and my morning journal for the last few weeks:

I’ve determined to become the best flower painter I can be. Which means I’m going to be painting quite a lot of flowers from here onwards.

Why did I make this decision? Well, I’m not sure myself that I understand all of it.

Flowers are certainly one of my favourite subjects. I love their delicacy, their symbolism, I love the challenge. For a long time, their fragility has seemed to me to be a metaphor for the very real fragility of my own life.

That realisation hit me hard when I became very ill about three years ago now, and had to stop work. Actually I had to stop everything, for quite a while.

It gave me a lot of time to think.

And when I began to recover, I was drawn even more to flower subjects. They have an added depth to me now, an emotional resonance that hits me whether it’s my own painting or someone else’s (assuming it’s one I love).

Every time I paint a flower now, it’s a reminder to myself of how grateful I am still to be here. That despite the struggles that we must inevitable go through in our lives, there is beauty too: A deep, rich and sustaining beauty that can touch our soul if we let it.

It requires some courage for that to happen. You have to open yourself to it. You leave yourself exposed and raw. Some people will not understand it. Some people, even those who you would expect to appreciate what you’re doing, will consider your work trite.

But it is absolutely worth it.

I made this painting over the space of four days. I’ve started woking more deliberately and slowly lately, to try to continually progress and get at least a little better at translating the fine nuances and subtleties of flowers into paint.

I think I did that this time. I don’t, always.

I streamed most of this painting live as I did it. Perhaps the greatest challenge was that the flowers died completely on day three. I used a photo reference at the end, whilst trying to keep within the decisions I’d already made at the start about the values, colours, the balance.

Here are the videos of each session. I’d intended to make a nice edited video for you of the process, but I’m afraid I just couldn’t find the time.

In lieu of that, I hope there will be something informative and useful for you here.

Best wishes and thanks for reading,

Paul

P.S. that tube of high chroma red in the picture is Naphthol Red from Michael Harding, the highest chroma red I know of in paint. I highly recommend you get some if you’re trying to paint red roses!

Here are the videos, warts and all:

Day one:

Day two:

Day three:

Day four:

About Paul

I'm a (mostly) self-taught artist. I paint realism in oils, mostly still life. I share my work, my evolving process and what knowledge I've gained on my own learning journey here, in the hope that it might help you along on
yours.

Comments

  1. 1

    Delores helms says

    July 26, 2019 at 12:57 am

    Tank you so much , Paul!

    Reply
  2. 2

    Suzanne Scow says

    July 26, 2019 at 4:06 am

    This post on fragility and life and the depth of beauty found in these flowers- it’s all so inspiring and I’m just blown away! You’ve done it again! This painting is remarkably rich and lovely and well, just “bang on!” (I say that all the time now as I mix my colors ) You nailed it! Today I was working on a mural and I honestly thought to myself what would I have done if I hadn’t taken Paul Foxton’s color course? I would be so lost with mixing colors! Thank you Paul! I just love all you share and teach and do.

    Reply
  3. 3

    Ted B. says

    July 26, 2019 at 7:18 am

    A worthy goal, the English garden is such a touchstone to the English cultural aesthetic even here in America; garden paintings, garden design, the works of Gertrude Jekyll.

    Reply
  4. 4

    Simonetta says

    July 28, 2019 at 7:52 am

    Very very beatiful
    Thank you

    Reply
  5. 5

    Romy says

    July 29, 2019 at 10:33 pm

    Watching Paul paint these flowers is akin to magic. Suddenly they glow and become alive. I have learnt so much from these videos, and I know that I am aiming high, but creating that alchemy is my benchmark. Thank you so very much Paul for all you share.

    Reply
    • 6

      Paul says

      July 30, 2019 at 6:20 am

      Thank you Romy, I”m so glad you’re finding them useful.

      Reply
  6. 7

    Sam says

    July 31, 2019 at 10:25 am

    Beautiful painting Paul, and loved these videos, so informative, and really enjoyed watching your process. Thank you!

    Reply
    • 8

      Paul says

      July 31, 2019 at 12:12 pm

      That’s great to hear, thank you!

      Reply

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Hi, I’m Paul

I'm a (mostly) self-taught artist. I paint realism in oils, mostly still life. I share my work, my evolving process and what knowledge I've gained on my own learning journey here, in the hope that it might help you on yours.
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