Thursday, July 28, 2011

Montbresia



12"x12" oil on gessoed masonite artboard

"Art is so wonderfully irrational, exuberantly pointless, but necessary all the same. Pointless and necessary, that's hard for a Puritan to understand." - Gunter Grass

This was such a wonderful day outside painting this from life. This is one of my favorite plants that blooms in the summer, that I had originally learned of in Ireland. Over there, it grows wild in hedgerows, just crazy lush each summer. It's the most wonderful shade of hot-red-warm orangey brilliance, and the foliage seems to vary from lime-green to blue-green depending upon how the sun light is hitting it. While I'm standing there painting, a couple hummingbirds are darting in and out among the blossoms- they LOVE this color of red. I think this is the plant that makes our hummers the happiest. Even with the wind blowing that sunny day and the flowers bobbing up and down, those little birds are tougher than any fighter pilots- they can maneuver in any direction while these flowers are bobbing in the wind. They are so tenacious!

I knew this summer I would get a painting of these from life and it would not be a 'botanical type rendering' but more of an impressionist viewpoint of the feeling I get from these incredible plants. Known as Montbresia or Crocosmia as well, I was happy to find that it would survive in southern New England, if in a protected area. This stand of them has tripled since we planted them. They are protected on one side by tall ornamental grasses and butterfly bushes.

This painting can be purchased directly from me from my DailyPainters.com gallery store

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4 Comments:

Blogger Diane Hoeptner said...

This is GORGEOUS!!!! Sweet patterns and repetition and oh, the colors, it looks almost abstract. LOVE, love, love!!!

August 1, 2011 at 5:12 PM  
Blogger Roxanne Steed said...

Thanks so much Diane!! You made my day! This has been one of my favorite paintings of the whole summer! and I'm toying with the idea of taking it BIG...perhaps 30x30 sort of big!

August 1, 2011 at 6:12 PM  
Blogger Sheila Vaughan said...

This is a terrific painting Roxanne, so full of energy and exuberance and you have the palette just right.

August 4, 2011 at 1:53 PM  
Blogger cathy hunt said...

Love this! I am so impressed that you are doing a PAINTING A DAY? Amazing.These are all beautiful, but I love the graphic symmetry of this one.

August 15, 2011 at 9:44 AM  

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