Mini Sunflowers

These sunflowers lasted a long time. I don't know if it was the plant food that I added to the water or the sunlight from my kitchen window that helped them to survive, but I got to enjoy them for over a week. 

This painting is still available, click to view the auction. This painting is the companion piece to my previous sunflower painting that I completed a few weeks ago.



I rarely paint images that are similar to each other but I had more than one reference photograph of these sunflowers. I enjoyed painting them the first time around and I thought it would be fun to paint them again.

Part of the reason for painting the same subject in a series is to build upon the previous painting. There were a few things that I did in the first painting that I wanted to try differently this time around.

I’m satisfied with how the original painting turned out but I felt there were more efficient ways to accomplish a similar result.

Mini Sunflowers
Acrylic on canvas board
8"x10"

For example, I toned the canvas with Hansa Yellow Opaque. That was somewhat of a mistake because it was too opaque and I applied it a little heavy.

The opacity obscured my pencil lines which made things more difficult than necessary. It forced me to draw with the paint, and figure out the shape of things as I went. It turned out just fine, but it was a little more difficult than necessary.

This time around I used Benzimidazolone Yellow Light, which is much more transparent and I applied it in a thinner manner. The drawing was much easier to see.

These technical issues may sound boring, but it’s how I improve. I actually keep a text file where I take notes about my paintings. When I finish a painting, I make observations about what works and what doesn't work. Then I think about solutions to these problems and try them out on the next painting.

It’s a process of trying things, observing the results, and then making adjustments. The progress is slow, and sometimes I take a step backwards, but the results can start to compound over the long haul.