Pretty in Blue Finished

Pretty in Blue is the May Workshop here at Studio Thirty Eight. I use a 12 x 16 double primed and stretched canvas.

To finish up Pretty in Blue required a step back to see what highlights and finishing touches were required. Always a good idea to take a break before you finish the painting. Returning after a short break gives you the opportunity to see your work with fresh eyes.

Here I have added some highlights to the flower petals, painted in the stamens and brightened up a couple of buds.

Pretty in Blue 5

I am trying not to continue to add white to highlight the flower petals. If you keep doing this you end up with very white, chalky flower petals. So I took a reverse approach and went into the shadowed areas and the dark negative spaces and added a darker value of the shadow colour. This seems to have deepened the shadows and brightened the highlights. Which I guess just goes to prove that you need the darks to show the lights. As final touch I edged some of the petals close to the lilacs with a touch of mauve.