Dyffryn Gardens 7th May 2016

On 7th May 2016 the Orchid Study Group will be in Dyffryn Gardens for Orchid Day - a celebration of all things Orchid - Tropical and Native Orchids.  I will be there too, demonstrating how I paint orchids in watercolour.   Do come along  for a wonderful informative day out in the most beautiful surroundings of Dyffryn Gardens.

Five Paintings and a Phonecall !

2016 has been an interesting year so far.

Five paintings finished and taken to London for selection for the SBA Shape Pattern, Structure Exhibition, in late February and then the nail biting wait to see if any have been selected.   Luckily they didn't make me wait too long to find out that not only were all five selected, but I had also been made a full member of the SBA!  To say I was happy is an understatement!

Then later I find out that all five paintings are to be hung!   And on top of that, I get The Phonecall...  I have been awarded Certificate of Botanical Merit for the Echeveria cante Inflorescence painting!  I didn't scream, honest, I was quite restrained, but I did need to sit down and take it all in.

Certificate of Botanical Merit - Echeveria cante

Gladiolus Hybrid - Dried Flowers

Phragmipedium sedenii

Paphiopedilum Maudiae Hybrid

Stanhopea graveolens

The SBA Exhibition in  Methodist Central Hall opposite Westminster Abbey is wonderful.  Almost 600 paintings by Botanical artists from all over the world.   But you really need more than one visit to take it all in.

Katherine Tyrrell has written a Review of the 2016 SBA Exhibition which will give those who can't get to London an idea of what they have missed.  Katherine also has written posts about Prizewinners, Certificates of Botanical Merit, and the Private View.  Giving a comprehensive idea of what the SBA 2016 Exhibition holds for the Botanical Art lover.

On top of all this, I have been working on a project which is still under wraps - more about this later!
Coming up - Dyffryn Gardens Orchid Day 7th May 2016

Vellum Adventures

 “Have no fear of perfection, you'll never reach it.” Salvador Dali

For a while I'd been wanting to try out painting on Vellum and last year, fellow artist and friend Shevaun Doherty gifted me a sample of vellum for me to try.   For a year I looked at it, examined it and backed away.  what if I spoiled it?  what if I wasted it making mistakes and ruined it?

In the end, I contacted William Cowley and bought a sample pack suitable for painting on.   Still I waited, there was only one piece of each type and I'd never worked on vellum before.

More research was needed. Luckily some of my Botanical Artist friends have blogged online about their Vellum painting techniques, so I was able to read about how they work with this tricky medium.

Dianne sutherland - Painting On Vellum who also teaches an online course Dianne Sutherland Botanical Art Online Course - Painting On Vellum,   Shevaun Doherty of Botanical Sketches and Other Stories: V is for Vellum,  Sarah Morrish of  Art and the Hedgerow: Painting on Vellum, and Kate Nessler for her article in The American Society of Botanical Artists: Painting on Vellum, all have excellent articles online about painting on Vellum and I learned an enormous amount from them.
 
Once I had enough information, it was time to practise my technique.   I've never been one to practise a piece fully before painting.  A few tonal/colour swatches and notes, a trial of a few petals/buds/leaves and I'm off.  I've always produced better results when I'm still exploring a subject and there's no point in having my best work in a sketchbook.  But there's no room for this with Vellum, it's too rare, so practise I did.

First practise was on paper, then on a small piece of Sheepskin Parchment which was lovely to work on.  Fortunately the gooseberries didn't ripen together so there was a steady supply of berrries. 

Dry brush practise on Paper, then Vellum (on top)

Dry brush on paper above, on Vellum below

Then, with more confidence, a more ambitious attempt on Manuscript Vellum, I tried a little piece of Kelmscott, but really didn't like working on it.

Dry Brush on Manuscript Vellum

 At last I felt that I could brave a larger piece and decided to try working on the Calfskin Vellum, a small branch of Gooseberries

First washes and Dry brush

 At first they looked a bit like glass Christmas Baubles, with their pale colours  

Building up the colours on the berries

Then as more colours were laid down, they started to look more Gooseberry-like

Hairless Gooseberry - Watercolour on Vellum

Salvadore Dali was right, there's no danger of me reaching perfection, but I won't stop trying.
I'm still not sure how I feel about painting on vellum, but I have a little more, so will try it again when I find the right subject.  What do you think, are you tempted to try it?

A Festival of Orchids

The Welsh Orchid Festival was, as usual, a whirlwind of flowers, scent and people.   So many lovely orchids in one place, and so many orchid lovers too.

Welsh Orchid Festival 2015

 We seem to have got our painting transportation down to a fine art now and the stand quickly took shape. This year, as I was tucked away in a far corner, I got a banner made so that people knew I was there and who I was.

Polly o'Leary Stand with Banner

 I had cards of some of my paintings printed and they were very well received.   More designs are planned for the new year.

Orchid Cards

Also this year, children were showing an interest in the orchids and it's so good to see young people being enthusiastic about plants.   Two young men of about seven or eight years became fascinated by my sketching and painting some Orchids and were most disappointed that there were no paper and paints for them to try it too.  We had a lovely chat about what I was painting and why, which bits were important, how and why I was measuring the plants and why the colours had to be matched exactly.  They were really very interested indeed and wondered if they would be able to do something like that.   I love that almost every child is an artist!

In the midst of it all my lovely friend Claire Ward popped in for a chat.  So nice to see her as we live on opposite sides of Wales!
 
As usual, I came home with more than I took.   A tray of baby Orchids of different species - yes species!  I'm now going into uncharted Orchid territory with these - grateful thanks for these go to Dr Kevin Davies, Chairman of the Welsh Orchid Study Group .   A pot of Scaphosepalum verrucosum, with minute flowers, grateful thanks to Mrs Val Micklewright of the Orchid Society of Great Britain
for these.  Paphiopedalum Black Jack, a baby Paphiopedilum St Swithin and Phalaenopsis Mini Mark also came home with me, but I bought these.  The living room now looks like a flower shop./Orchid nursery!

Paphiopedilum St Swithin Sketch

 I was also given Orchids to paint again this year,  a flower of Paphiopedilum St Swithin gratefully received from Andrew Bannister of Orchid Alchemy, and a whole plant - Stanhopea tigrina, on loan from Alan Gregg of Singleton Botanical Garden Swansea, so as usual it was a race against time in the coming days to record these lovelies before they wilted.

I wasn't the only artist at the show though.  Paul Steer of Art in a Corner had a stand with his amazing watercolour frescoes of landscapes, butterflies and other nature inspired subjects.   It's fascinating how many different ways there are to portray similar subjects and Paul has a most original way of looking at the world and then letting us glimpse his vision.

Coming soon - Adventures with Vellum

Welsh Orchid Festival 5th and 6th September 2015

Next week is the Welsh Orchid Festival at the National Botanic Garden of Wales. There's great excitement here at Polly’s studio as I finish up the last paintings and make sure I have everything ready for my stand.

If you can make it, don’t forget to say hello.

The patron of the Welsh Orchid Study Group - Tom Hart Dyke will also be attending.   More information below.

Fellow artist Paul Steer will also be there with his beautiful and unusual fresco paintings

I will have some new paintings on the stand, and have been madly painting to make sure they are finished in time.     Here's a teaser of one of the latest, a very dark red Paphiopedilum.

Paphiopedilum

On the easel today

With the Welsh Orchid Festival at the National Botanic Garden of Wales in early September, I'm working like crazy to get some paintings finished.    On the easel today is this lovely Orchid.   I'm not sure whether it's a species or hybrid, but the colours are amazing!  Trying to capture it is a challenge of the nicest kind and trying to photograph it is an even bigger challenge, so my apologies for the lack of colour accuracy on this one, you'll just have to come see it at the Orchid Festival.   Others are also in the finishing stage! 

Paphiopedilum Hybrid?

“If I could say it in words there would be no reason to paint.” Edward Hopper 

Also on my mind at the moment is the small matter of my Artist Statement, which really needs to be written.  But I'm afraid I'm with Edward Hopper on this matter, so it's a particular and peculiar problem for me.    Nevertheless it must be done, and done it will be.

But what does one actually say about oneself?   Is this a problem all artists get?    I'd love to hear how you have solved this problem...

 

Great excitement at Polly's

There's great excitement here at the moment,  my first slipper orchid,  bought two years ago at the Welsh Orchid Festival,  has decided to form a scape.   From peeking out between the centre of the top leaves,  it has now grown into a fully opened flower!

This has happened rather more quickly than the original flower when I bought the plant, so I've been hard at work recording the different stages in my sketchbook.

Study page for Paph. maudiae x Charlesworthii

It's quite a challenge colour-wise and I found that there was only one colour in my collection that was perfect for capturing the deep purply colour of the markings and stem - Perylene Violet, a colour introduced to me by my lovely friend Jarnie at Sketchbook Squirrel

Paph. Maudiae x Charlesworthii study of developing flower

Since I bought a tiny tube to try, I've been amazed at the versatility of this wonderful single pigment colour which reduces the need for mixing and gives me a deep colour with plenty of  chroma and life to it, so I'm very happy to have a project that will make use of this wonderful transparent pigment.

What colour/colours have you found you can't live without?