Colorful Tulips in Portland

Title: Colorful Tulips in Portland © 2009 Christine Pierce
(please click on image to enlarge)

As I was zipping along in my little car yesterday, I saw these tulips out of the corner of my eye. I immediately turned my car around and went back to take a picture. These beautiful blooms, to me, are the epitome of spring!

More Droopy Tulips...

Thirteen Droopy Tulips, v.2
(watercolor 4"x3.5" cropped, micron 02 pen, Arches 90-lb cp;
please click on image to enlarge)

I've been on something of a tulip-painting binge of late. The above tulips are my final version of some tulips I painted last week. They were so bright and cheerful in real life, but my initial version (below) just did not do them justice:

Thirteen Droopy Tulips, v.1
(watercolor 5"x4", micron 02 pen, Arches 90-lb cp;
please click on image to enlarge)

Opera Pink Tulips

Opera Pink Tulips
5"x7" watercolor on Arches 140# cp;
Noodler's Lexington Gray Bulletproof ink & bamboo stick; micron 02 pen

I love droopy tulips! Here's a helpful tip from my florist: if you want your tulips to droop, use a vase with a curved shape. If you want your tulips to remain straight, use a straight-sided vase. I've tried both types of vases, and have found this advice to be quite reliable!

For this sketch, I used a bamboo stick dipped in Lexington Gray Bulletproof Noodler's Ink. Then I used two fun, new (to me) colors: Holbein "Opera" pink and Winsor & Newton "Quinacridone Gold." These will both become part of my regular palette. (The green leaves are just a mixture of greens and a touch of brown). Finally, I added a few ink lines with my trusty micron pigment pen.

Red Tulips on Aqua Background

Red Tulips on Aqua Background (watercolor)

I wanted to catch the bright energy of these tulips before they began to wilt...

Red Tulips in Black Vase

These slightly droopy but brightly-hued tulips caught my eye today. They are sitting on the table in our entryway, remnants of a Valentine tableau.

I'd like to welcome everyone to my new Blogger blog. Thank you for coming from Christine's Art Blog (which was having problems showing up properly in Internet Explorer). I hope you like what you see, and that you'll check back soon!

You can view a collection of my sketches (first shown on my prior blog) in the left sidebar. See, just up and to your left, there. And please feel free to leave me a comment, to let me know that you've found me. Thanks!

All my best,
Christine