I've been doing watercolor commissions and liturgical prints all week, taking my walk late in the day and lingering a bit in the Old Forest to enjoy the wildflowers blooming there now. I've especially loved this glade full of phlox this past week.

On this Saturday morning, I decided to give myself a break on work for others and go paint the phlox while they're still blooming. Mr. Darcy and I walked over with my backpack and painting gear.

 I think of myself as a landscape painter and not a flower painter, so I kept it pretty wide angle, but it was fun to try a different subject. There's a lot more surface movement than in most of my pieces, and I was trying to keep it from just looking blotchy, but I'm fairly pleased with the outcome.

Mike texted that it reminded him of the Van Gogh we saw last month in the Cincinnati Art Museum. A happier Van Gogh, he said. No greater compliment. I did love that painting, and apparently I do have it on the brain without quite realizing how much.

Below are some of the wildflowers Mr. Darcy and I have been enjoying in the forest lately. Just because they're beautiful...