All In A Golden Afternoon (Norfolk Botanical Rose Garden)

6"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival artboard

"You can learn a lot of
things from the flowers, for especially
in the month of June. There's a wealth
of happiness and romance, all in the
golden afternoon..."
- from Disney's Alice in Wonderland

Have you ever been to a place that made you believe in magic? Something about it that took your breath away at the site of it? Turned the corner and there it was....even if only for a moment, then the light changes, the moment forever gone? There's a wonderful botanical garden in Norfolk, VA where I had spent many happy days painting while I lived there...and from time to time when I get to visit there. The rose garden seems to go on forever. In the late afternoon on this particular day, the light was golden...and I knew I'd remember it forever. Made me start humming "Golden Afternoon", from Disney's version of 'Alice in Wonderland' from my 2nd grade days....have a listen:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0lbfEb8MMk

Find yourself a bit of magic, take a walk in a garden; doesn't matter if it's yours or not. Enjoy the light, the shade, the fragrance. Take off your shoes, walk barefoot in the grass....there now, don't you feel better?

Contact me to purchase this painting: roxannesteed@gmail.com

******Notes for artists: I've had another artist friend ask me about the roses on the picket fence I painted the other day, specifically, what kind of palette knife do I use to get that kind of detail? My answer - the bigger the better. I actually use a rounded tip knife, same one, on almost every painting I do, my current favorite is a Langnickel P-5, the blade is a little over 3 inches long with a rounded tip rather than a pointy one. You can move a lot of paint with that thing, yet still have the edges & tip for detail. Give it a try if you're inclined to paint with a knife....and want to really learn to 'mass things in' rather than 'draw & color it in'.