Ballet Flowers

I painted this during my first plein air painting excursion in the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. I have shot many photos there, but this was the first plein air experience,. I didn't get too far from the gate.

A Flower Begins

This was my second visit to the gardens to paint. My agreement with Pam was that I wouldn't stay in one place the entire visit. I saw this bloom midway through the gardens. I did a quick sketch on Garza papel (paper) and moved on. I later added watercolor. I was attracted to the transparency of the petals.

Garden Painting 1

I painted this watercolor at the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. Usually I will shoot photos for painting later. On this visit I painted and didn't get too far into the gardens before I found this grouping of flowers. A beekeeper from New Jersey walked by and told me to include some bees. They didn't make it in to the painting.