Three flowers, in coloured pencil on green.

Bearded iris, king protea and garden rose, drawn in coloured pencil on a green-grey background. The simple function of these is beauty and wonder, and sometimes that's function enough.

Some drawings are made to explain something. Some are just an excuse for me to look at the subject for a long time.

Each flower is carried to full density by layering thin pencil strokes at the centre and then letting go toward the edges. The leaves left as bare contour, stems dropping into a single line. Stopping there is deliberate. I like this effect. It keeps the piece from competing with a photograph (and losing), while still showing the individual strokes you can no longer make out at the centre, once layers and layers of pencil have built up density.

Drawing flowers is like my guilty pleasure, they're the topic least commissioned, but the ones I enjoy working on the most. If you work with a garden, a guide, or a collection, please reach out!