Painting Pansies continued.

Today My students and I continued painting the pansies. It was time to add the details to the flowers. The yellow just below the the flower centres was added first followed by the dark patterns that occur on the bottom three petals of the Pansy flower. To add the dark bib shape detail to the pale flower I made a stronger mix of the petal colour. I wet the whole of the bottom petal with clean water and waited until it was just damp and then added the strong mix of the petal colour closely studying the flower to create the correct shape. The petal was then allowed to dry thoroughly before I painted the two side petals in the same manner, slightly diluting the paint. The purple pansy bib details were then painted. The colour for this was a much stronger mix of Winsor violet and Alizarin Crimson.

I then added the fine veining to the petals by using the very tip of a pointed brush. The veins were softened with a damp brush (brush was washed and wiped on kitchen roll to remove excess water) by gently running the brush over the vein lines. Shading was then added to the flowers to show where one petal overlapped another pruducing a shadow. The same shade of paint was used as for the bib details but a little more water was added. The paint was applied to the petals were the shadows fell and this was then blended away using a damp brush to produce a soft edge. The way to create a soft blend, before the paint begins to dry, is to tickle the very edge of the paint applied. This encourages the applied paint to spread softly into the area dampened by the brush. This can be seen on the photograph where the side petal overlaps the back petal. Any little creases around the edges of the petals can be tackled in a similar way. Apply the paint to one side of the crease where the shadow occurs and with a damp brush soften one edge. The backs of the flower petals tend to be lighter and a little duller (use a weaker colour mix) but the techniques are the same. Next week my students and I will be tackling the first stages of the leaves and finishing the flower centres.

This is one of my paintings showing how mastering the techniques for painting pansies can enhance a composition.