Painting Imaginary Flowers

Book excerpt: Discover a fresh, fun approach to painting unique flowers! Forgo reference photos and discover a more organic and joyful way of painting! With its friendly step-by-step format, Painting Imaginary Flowers features a simple, three-stage approach to creating flowers only you can make... 1. Drop in color (ink, watercolor or fluid acrylics) to create abstract backgrounds full of beautiful textures and "blooms." 2. Just like spotting shapes in the clouds, search for shapes in your background that suggest blossoms and leaves. Paint around them and watch the flowers emerge! 3. Add patterns in pen to create a lovely, faux collage effect. With plenty of mixed-media techniques throughout for building up luscious texture and color, even beginners can achieve happy results. Ten demonstrations show the versatility of this approach--from large-format pieces, to work in a series, and even Zen doodle landscapes. Never again will you be stuck for ideas or dependent on a photo. Every flower you paint will be unique, personal, and fresh from your imagination! Let your imagination blossom!