The Big Blue Monster

 

Agapanthus africanus WIP © Shevaun Doherty 2015

“Perseverance, secret of all triumphs.”

Victor Hugo

I am not a flower painter. 

Don’t get me wrong, I adore flowers of every kind, and I really admire artists who can capture that transient beauty with what seems like effortless grace. I’m just far happier painting fruit, seeds and dried plants, where I can indulge myself in the luxury of time, knowing that they aren’t going to wilt before my eyes.

Initial studies

The Agapanthus africanus is really not for the faint hearted. It’s a big robust ball of blueness that stands out taller than it’s neater cousins, Agapanthus praecox. Whilst doing my bud studies, I noticed with a bit of alarm, that there were over 50 flowers in each umbel! (I counted them in a fit of procrastination) Okay, so they weren’t all going to open at the same time, but once they started to open, it was definitely going to be a race against time.

So how to start?

Buds and Blooms

Agapanthus bud © Shevaun Doherty 2015

"Each flower is a soul opening out to nature." 

-  Gerald De Nerval

They say that there is no greater motivating factor than a deadline, but for a botanical artist, the realisation that the flowers are just not going to wait for their portrait to be painted is enough to get even the slowest of brushes flying!

After months of waiting patiently for the flowers to appear, my beautiful blue Agapanthus africanus flowers are now all blooming at once. Mild panic sets in as I suddenly realise

Summertime Blues

“Blue colour is everlastingly appointed by the deity to be a source of delight.”

John Ruskin

Blue is the colour that sings to us of heaven and sky, of fresh water and deep oceans, of spirituality, serenity and stability. It’s definitely one of my favourite colours, and yet I don’t seem to paint many blue subjects. All that is about to change, because I have a garden full of blues … tall elegant Agapanthus flowers that are just coming into bloom.

The first challenge with any new plant is the set-up. It’s great when

Changes

“Change always comes bearing gifts.”

Price Pritchett

A change is as good as a rest they say. Recently I needed to take a short break from the botanical art and blogging, and take time out to catch up with my life.

Change is good. It gives you a chance to re-evaluate

Bees and Butterflies

African Monarch butterfly  © Shevaun Doherty

"Small deeds done are better than great deeds planned"

Peter Marshall

Summer is here, and as I write this, I’m sitting in my garden, bathed in sunshine, surrounded by flowers and the steady hum of bumblebees. Every now and then a butterfly flits between the blossoms, pausing briefly to sip on nectar before fluttering off to explore another garden. 

All around me nature is blissfully at work.

However this might not always be the case. A recent worrying report by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), states that we are losing entire species at an alarming rate, so much so that we are in danger of losing 30-50% of all species by mid-century. Unlike previous mass extinctions, this is entirely due to man’s devastating effect on the planet.

Of course, we all read things like this and wonder just how we can help, but each of us can, in our own little way, and we can start in our own back garden with the bees and the butterflies.Their numbers are in rapid decline, and if they disappear, the effects will cascade throughout ecosystems, affecting all aspects of life on earth. 

Challenges! Painting the Laburnum

Laburnum anagyroides on natural calf vellum © Shevaun Doherty 2015

“Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.”

Arthur Ashe

Sometimes we sail through life like a ship on a calm sea, and at other times, everything seems to come at once- a veritable maelstrom of appointments, deadlines, exams, exhibitions and meetings. I’ve been channelling my inner Wonder Woman recently, and rather than allowing everything to overwhelm me, facing my challenges one at a time.

I can do this!

A plentiful supply of fresh flowers is a must for a complex painting such as this. Okay, perhaps I was a little too enthusiastic!

Right at the top of my To-do list has been the laburnum. Not only did I have a deadline that was looming with ever increasing urgency, but the flowers were blooming and finishing before my eyes!

Plant, vellum, I'm all set to go!

Bloom 2015

 Red dates Phoenix dactylifera, GOLD MEDAL ©Shevaun Doherty 2013

The difference between TRY and TRIUMPH is a little UMPH.

~Anonymous

I am walking around with a grin that would do the Cheshire Cat proud. 

This has been a bit of a rollercoaster year for me, but this week, all the hard work, time and sheer stubbornness paid off. 

I won TWO medals, a Gold and a Silver, at Bloom Botanical & Floral Art Exhibition!!!

"Per aspera ad astra" (Through difficulties to the stars)
Aesculus hippocastanum triptych SILVER MEDAL

 Woohoo!!

I was very lucky to win a gold medal last year, but to get a second this year was a huge surprise! It’s like hearing a little voice saying in my ear “Keep going. You’re on the right path”.

Excuse me whilst I do another little happy dance around my room from the sheer delight of it all!