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Living in a subtropical climate is not conducive to painting outdoors. Heat, humidity, mosquitoes and other hazards limit the experience; therefore, I look for creativity within my studio walls. Still Life and flowers are perfect subjects.  After attending flower shows or after working in my garden on a daily basis, I want to transfer the beauty of flowers onto the canvas. Sometimes I may choose a flower or two; however, my vision is frequently a giant bouquet that would depict their magnificent glory. I look for potential candidates in every place I go until a bouquet catches my eyes. I use its structure as a skeleton for my composition but I delete some of the flowers and add others to match the vision in my mind. In essence, I create my own bouquet of flowers on the canvas

Sometimes I look for a triangular composition similar to a family portrait where the subjects are the different flower varieties.  Other times, it is a vertical composition or a zig zag one. Peonies are often main characters. A pink, a purple or a white peony might hang alone against the contrasting color of the background or vase. Some placed there purposely to become a focus in the composition. 

Birds visit my garden year-round and I can observe them feeding, flying or nesting. Needless to say, they become part of the design picking their type and colors to match the surrounding flowers. Much to my disdain, snails and other insects become a pest that I constantly battle in my garden; therefore, they are added into my compositions as a symbol of my garden struggle but also as a symbol of the struggle to put this multitude of leaves and flowers all together in one vase.

The creative process of deleting and adding flowers and greenery in different spots of the bouquet are in my mind but I verify possibilities using the computer. Some changes are impromptu while painting and I must admit I often change things even after they have been painted. Due to the changes in composition, the entire artwork is first done in a monochrome tone. Once the monochrome painting is complete, I add layers upon layers of different colors. The final background is decided once most of the flowers have their color. The background is often a mix of the colors used for the bouquet. That way I ensure a certain degree of harmony between the positive and the negative areas. During the inspiration phase, I usually underestimate the number of flowers and greenery I strive to include but during the working process I come to appreciate the magnitude of the task at hand for each piece of art.