Rain in the Desert!

Today, before working into the mountains, I decided to widen the cactus on the right. I added a criss-cross pattern to indicate where the spines would go - this lattice pattern is very common in plants of all types.

Ooh! A sudden drip on my head made me look up. It was raining outside, and as the rain got progressively heavier it began to leak through the glasshouse roof. I noticed a few streaks of water on my painting ...

I played 'dodge the drips' for the rest of this painting session! Fortunately acrylic paint, when dry, is waterproof. As long as the rain didn't pour onto my freshly painted areas, it would be OK.

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I worked into the distant mountains with more blue mixture. This time I used Ultramarine Blue, with Titanium White, Yellow Ochre and a touch of Burnt Sienna. This gave a nice hue which I made more mauvey by adding a little Cadmium Red Medium.

I decided to remove one of the barrel shaped cacti, as the arrangement looked a little cluttered. I did this by sponging over some Titanium White mixed with a touch of Yellow Ochre, and applied two more layers in this way.

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The rocks were given form by adding a mixture of Burnt Sienna, Yellow Ochre, Titanium White and Ultramarine Blue. For the green definition on the cacti I added some Cerulean Blue to Yellow Ochre and Titanium White and then a touch of Lemon Yellow .

Some detail was added to the Aloe on the left - I worked in some of the rosettes of leaves and the markings on the trunk.

Drip drip drip went the rain ... and more appeared on my painting. This was a little more worrying as it was running down an area I had just painted, and was washing some of the colour off in streaks. Not a lot I could do about it, so I just got on with painting elsewhere on the mural.

There were really loud sploshings coming from across the room. The table with some (fortunately laminated!) information sheets on was really getting wet, so I walked across to move some of the items.
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It was then that I saw the face ...

Across the giant lily pond, nestled among the potted cacti was a little prickly pear with a face like a surprised bunny!

I wondered if it was astounded at my painting methods ... It looked quite shy, so I went softly back to my mural.

Now for a bit of definition!
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I mixed a darker green with Lemon Yellow, Ultramarine Blue, a little Titanium White and Yellow Ochre. This I applied in the crevices of the cacti.

For the shadowy areas of the boulders I used Burnt Sienna, Yellow Ochre and Ultramarine, with a touch of Titanium White. I am always careful not to overdo this defined shading - it's tempting to rush in and do too much.

Reluctantly I decided it was time to finish, to let the painted areas dry before working into them any more. The rain had stopped, the dripping was lessening and I could hear the crickets chirping in their tank. As I closed the door behind me, I wondered if the little bunny faced cactus would trot across and have a closer look at the mural as soon as I had gone ...

The Emerging of the Cacti!

Today was the time to start picking out the forms of the cacti ...

I began with an underlay of Yellow Ochre and Titanium White to give some inner life to the cactus on the right.

Next I picked out the basic forms of the others, and added some more definition to the rocks and pebbles.

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Before adding any texture and pattern, I went to be inspired by the texture and pattern outside in the Gardens.

The mahonia is flowering in the Winter Garden, and I gloried in its perfume. I love the contrast between the long leaf shapes and the little yellow dots of the flowers. (I use the term 'dots' artistically, not botanically!)

The Himalayan Birches always look magical to me. In the shadows the little gate-like structure in the fence seems to beckon to a secret pathway.

Texture and colour abound on the papery trunks of these beautiful trees.

Here entrancing glimpses of lemony yellow catkins are seen through the rustly russet leaves of the beech hedge.

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I am inspired!

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Back in the glasshouse I swiftly layer in brushstrokes of ochre to give the sand colour to the desert.

This will be toned down later, and the colour broken up with more layers.

More layers are built up on the cacti, in Yellow Ochre and Titanium White, with some Cerulean Blue also.

The directional brushstrokes indicate the slope of the mountains and the texture of the stones .

Tomorrow it will be the mountains!

Blue Skies and Stony Sands

The first task today was to build up the sky some more. I used an overly-blue mixture of Cerulean Blue, Titanium White and a touch of Yellow Ochre to give a good colour over which to work a more subtle hue. The effect was so bright I nearly looked for my sun cream!
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While this layer was drying I went in search of snowdrops ...

Outside it was very overcast, with no blue, Cerulean or other, in the sky. The grey overhead and the shadows by the stream seemed to accentuate the bright bead-like quality of the snowdrops which gleamed almost merrily among the fallen leaves.

As I rounded a corner I was faced with the almost luminous red stems of a dogwood. Contrasting with the dark shadowy greens behind, they shone like so many slender flickering flames.

Back in the glasshouse my sky was dry enough to work into. I scumbled another layer with the sponge, paling the blue and lightening as I worked down to the horizon.

Next I added some suggestions of stones and pebbles in the sandy foreground.

A little more lightness at the horizon, and then I laid in the edges of the mountains with a brush.

I really didn't want to stop painting, but in a few minutes time there would be a very interesting talk to the Friends of the Botanic Garden by Professor Gilmartin. Time to clean up and head for the Visitors' Centre!

First Steps into a Desert ...

I do love a blank canvas - or as on this occasion - a blank panel! A lovely smooth white surface just waiting to be painted on ...

The light in the glasshouse is quite bright, and the pure white gesso panel very glaring. Fortunately I have my sunglasses with me!

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Before commencing painting, I like to stand and look at my 'canvas' from all angles, to familiarise myself with its shape and size.

It is not often that I paint on a panel with a fascinating collection of plants right behind it! And this is the first 'studio' I've worked in where there is a giant raised lilypond right behind me ...

The enormous leaves gleam bronze in the overhead light, and I marvel at their patterns.

One beautiful lily is open. What an inspiring place to work!

Time to begin! First of all I look at my design, which I have printed onto a sheet of A4 paper as a guide.

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I have sketched in a simple grid based on the four upright panels, with a division half way down.

I mix some Titanium White and Yellow Ochre acrylic paint to sketch in the positions of the cacti and mountains. This is brushed on quite thinly so that I can make adjustments. Working swiftly I use rhythmic brushstrokes to impart a liveliness to the composition, frquently standing back to see the design as a whole.

Next I lay in the first coat of the sky. This is applied using a sponge, which I scumble in lightly. My colours are Titanium White, Cerulean Blue and a little Yellow Ochre.

You can see the scumbled effect of the sponge in this close-up. I will leave this to dry, and come back to lay in some of the lighter gradations of the lower sky.

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Time for a cup of tea!

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But not until I have stood back and looked again and again from a distance ...

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And paused to admire the new house for stick insects which is being built behind me as I paint!

Durham University Botanic Garden

Ingrid Sylvestre

From Solstice to Succulents!

A leap of several weeks and a drastic climate change from wintry snow to the temperature of the desert!

I have the exciting task of designing and creating a mural for the Cactus House at the University of Durham Botanic Garden.

Adjacent to beautiful wooded areas just south of Durham City, the Botanic Garden is a glorious place to be at all times of year. There is atmosphere, aesthetic beauty, botanical interest and a very nice cafe serving a plethora of culinary delights!

The Cactus House is situated in one of several glasshouses and is home to a fascinating collection of cacti and other succulents.

The mural is to be situated against the glass 'wall' which you can see straight ahead on the above photograph. This should make the cacti stand out instead of being a little 'lost' against the mixture of metal struts and items visible through the glass.

The actual painting work will be done in the adjacent glasshouse room - you can just see the tops of the white panels in the distance behind the creepers.

Here we have a mockup of the blank panels.

Above is a tonal 'sketch' of the proposed design. It is intended to complement the real cacti situated in the foreground and to draw the eye gently back into the distance.

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The scene will feature a cloudless sky and sparse plant life as a contrast to other habitats, such as rainforest. This will provide a useful reference and demonstration to school and other groups visiting the Botanic Garden.

Four plywood panels have been smoothly primed with acrylic gesso and are now ready for me to apply the first stages of the composition.

Here the preliminary sketch I created on paper has been superimposed over the photo to show where the various cacti will be painted. Some of the species have since been changed to give more variety of shape and form.

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Watch this space! 

Ingrid Sylvestre 

Durham artist Ingrid Sylvestre, mural artist, North East painter & artist, Durham City, North East England UK.