It’s not a truth universally acknowledged that a keen interest in, and knowledge of, old-world roses will get you the girl in the end…..but that worked for me. So when I suggested to Nicky that I paint ‘Blossomtime’, a lovely pink old-world looking rose, she naturally thought it was a great idea. I love the way the petals are recurved back on themselves, heightening the perception of 3D. Plus it was the rose I chose to climb all over my old studio in Mansfield years ago – I just had to paint it as a Hyperrealist piece.
My painting technique over the past 40 years depends on a very detailed underpainting, where I balance the tones and get it right as a black and white piece. This is then followed by layer upon layer of glaze built up, often over many weeks, to get the right colour and texture. It’s a labour intensive and time consuming method. And like many artists I usually end up not loving the end result. I get too close to it. But I think I like this one….
I have taken a few images to show the painstaking development of this piece over the weeks. Nicky is the scale object!