"KALEIDOSCOPE," 10133, daily painter textured poppy floral original © Carol Nelson Fine Art

I took a few shots of this painting in progress so you could get an idea of the process. The first step (not shown) was to put on the texture by sculpting the petals using acrylic modeling paste.

The under painting on the background shows through in the final painting in varying degrees. You can see if you click on the finished painting to enlarge it, that my brush work is loose. I'm not trying to "stay inside the lines." I think it adds to the visual interest when there is movement and suggested forms.

Notice too, how the flower forms overlap one another, leaving varied and interesting negative space. Students often have a tendency to paint individual flowers that don't touch one another, ending with a stiff, unnatural arrangement.

This large 36x24 acrylic on canvas painting is available. Please click here to go to my website for purchase information.

"ORIENTAL RED," 10129, daily painter textured poppy © Carol Nelson Fine Art

Another poppy painting. I love the intensity of these red poppies. They are actually slightly redder (less orange) than they are in these photos. If I increased the red tone in the photo, the background was not accurate, so this is a compromise.
As you might notice, I started out with a under painting of blues and purples, then overlayed it with beige, gray and green tones. The neutral background really makes the reds pop.This 36x18 original textured acrylic painting is available on my website. Click here for purchase information.

Poppies Four, oil pastel on paper by Carol Engles

9x12 oil pastel on paper. jcengles@verizon.net or:

carolengles.artspan.com

California Abstract Artist Carol Engles