Butterfly Amaryllis (Hippeastrum papilio) Part 1 - Preview

Dear painting people, this week's project is a lot of leaves and the first part of a two-part project.

I loved this reference picture, taken at the summer house at Kew Gardens, as the bright light gave the leaves a blue hue. The smoothness and shininess of the leaves was also captivating.

With such a collision of leaves it is advisable to move around to allow each small area to dry, and allow more time in between to allow the fine sweeps of green to really set before laying over your finishing washes.

Beginners and intermediates can have a go at this of course but take it one leaf at a time, the trick with this approach to soft shiny leaves is confidence in the amount of initial water and following applications of colour. 

I hope you join me next time to complete the flowers and perfect the painting.

Wishing you peace, sunshine and a little rain.
Billy x