STORY BEHIND THE ART OF INGRID FINNAN

17th Annual International

American Society of Botanical Artists at The Horticultural Society of New York

Eastern Redbud – Spring Flowers and Leaves

Cercis canadensis

Every spring I would admire the amazing, magical flowers that erupt in profusion from the rough trunk and delicate branches of the understory redbud trees in my neighborhood. I'd not seen the flowers painted in a botanical work so I thought I would give it a try. I actually painted this Eastern Redbud a year before the one that is currently touring in the Bartrams show.

The artwork is a two-part composition: the early spring flowers occupy a branch in the lower third of the art work, while the upper two-thirds is occupied by a leafy branch. I chose to paint this composition enlarged x2 to allow for more definition in the flowers and to capture the drama I saw in the heart-shaped leaves. The same rose/magenta color appears in both flowers and leaves, helping to unite the composition.

The leaves were easy and fun to paint, but the 60-plus flowers at different angles were much more challenging!

Yellow Dahlia 

Dahlia cv.

I had some success in last year’s Hort show with a red dahlia I painted, so when a friend brought me some yellow dahlias from her garden, I thought I would try another dahlia painting.

Dahlias pretty much have their definitive growth, a large flower head on an upright stem, surrounded by buds emerging from the main stem. I felt a bit limited in what I could do with a composition of a single flower, so I gave the main flower some supporting players.

I've never painted a large yellow flower before and found it to be a difficult challenge to bring depth to the center of the flower. I wanted the colors to remain clean, but the yellow as it deepens can only go into a rust, umber, or sienna. And the yellow cast painted on white paper takes on a different cast in different lights, so it remains elusive. I would think I got it right and an hour later with a change in light, the color would look wrong.

I work in oil, which I am learning to adapt to flower painting. I endlessly study the Old Masters but am still mystified as to how they achieved the luminosity of their flower portraits. 

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Read more about this artist's work:  Weird, Wild & Wonderful