Although its still rather cold, our white cherry tree is now in full bloom, so it will not be long now before this road is full of pink cherry blosssom... as it gets a little more like springtime...

 

                                              White Lilies : oil on canvas,  Janet Driver

there is something very peaceful about painting lilies... they are so elegant and graceful...

the method I have used means slowing down, taking time to experiment and discover just the right transparent paints to do background layers over the whole canvas that will result in this very rich green... its all too easy to end up with too much blue, or a kind of teal green, and I wanted to have the exact green of the leaves, stem and buds... then each glaze layer needs to be left to completely dry before the next colour is glazed over the top... and finally, the lily itself can be painted...and again each colour needs to dry before the next one is painted over it...painstakingly slow, but somehow very fitting for this kind of flower...   trying to catch the light at just the right angle for the shapes to emerge in all their beauty... I am filled with awe & wonder as each day passes with a little more of their beauty revealed... until the painting begins to echo the joy within the flower...

oil on canvas : c. janet driver

Thursday : daily picture

walking down the garden to give my shed / studio a coat of dark green paint l just had to stop and take these photos of beautiful deep pink flowers opening up in the sunshine...