A bouquet of flowers for Womens Day- Choosing a flower for a botanical illustration

   Women and flowers seem to go together, beautiful, and delicate. I saved yesterday's post for today since I thought it would be nice to do an International Women's Day themed post. And what more pleasant subject than flowers. I realize that for many women today is a day to think about the rights they wish for or the changes to society they would like to see come into effect, I, however, rather enjoy my life as a woman. I don't particularly feel that there is anything I am missing out on or would like to do that I can't. I realize of course that this is a privileged position not available to many women around the globe and I am thankful for it. So today's post far from being a complaint on the subject of what I don't have is a chance to appreciate some of the lovely things I do have.  And one of those things is flowers- Men just don't usually receive them, one of the perks of being a woman;)


    Since I began doing botanical illustration I have acquired an added dimension to my appreciation of nature in general and flowers in particular. I love the diversity of form and color and am always looking for new and unique shapes and perspectives to draw.


Over the last several years I have drawn quite a lot of flowers and have developed certain preferences and tricks in how I represent them. Here are a few of the things I pay attention to when choosing a subject.

Contrast:

   A plant with two or more completely different colors always appeals to me, especially if those colors are present in the same area. creating a flowing gradient from one color into a completely different one can be a fun challenge.

Shape:

 Unique or extravagant shapes can be more challenging to draw but also more fun to paint.

Surface Texture:


   Obvious surface texture is more creates depth, imitating that texture in a painting keeps the picture from being too flat.

Perspective:

  Even if the plant is relatively well known there are often ways to draw it which will allow it to appear more interesting, I usually try looking for a unique way of portraying my chosen subject, directly from above or below, looking straight at it, or maybe together with something completely different.

Symmetry:

   Plants with a round or even symmetry are fun because the image is already balanced. I don't have to think as much about composition and whether or not to add a strategically placed leaf.

Repeating elements:

Some plants such as vines have repeating elements which are virtually identical. This gives the artist the opportunity to paint the same element from different angles.

Scale:

   Large leaves and tiny flowers or vise versa can keep an image interesting and fun to draw.

Color:

   And obviously, intense and unusual colors are even more fun to use than 'normal' ones.

Well, that's what I usually look for when choosing which flower in a bouquet I want to illustrate. I hope some of these suggestions were useful.

What criteria do you use when choosing a natural element in a painting or decoration? Let me know in the comments.


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 * Alle of the photos in this posts are of flowers I saw at the Botanical Gardens in Oxford, England.