Hollyhock and Letterbox

This is part of a step by step demonstration that appears in my book. Flowers in the Landscape (Search Press) I made this painting while the editor and photographer looked on taking notes and photographing each stage. That was fun, if a little scary!

I concocted the composition from some photos I had taken in Barbizon, a village South of Paris in France while on a touring holiday in the region. The important factor was the morning light which was coming obliquely from the left and casting interesting shadows over the flowers and structures.

Along with the light and cast shadows there was an added bit of human interest afforded by the box with its half posted letters.

I've put the photos here for you to see how you can combine different elements into one painting.