I finally finished the study of a simple bouquet of sunflowers after hammering away for almost a whole week. Selecting a bouquet with light yellow centers gave me more material for observation, so I was better able to explore the sculptural depth of the shapes. Typically sunflowers with a standard dark center wind up being fairly stark and graphic, and I always feel that no amount of trickery can make the darkness sit back down inside the flowers, as opposed to merely being dark spots on the surface of the painting. If this bouquet lasts a few more days, I may explore this with another study. It would be nice to see if I can capture the same depth and substance with a bit more brevity and panache.
On a side note, the frogs in the swamp below me started whistling tonight. After a long dark day of wind and driving rain, it’s nice to hear that strangely haunting chorus welling up from the forest.
