Watercolor Elephant - still a work in progress

Although it may not look like much has been accomplished on my elephant, let me assure you that it has taken hours and hours to put the detail in his long trunk - 24" long, and every inch needing to show the texture of his skin as you see above.  Ears and eyes are just about done, the head is half done, and then I have to tackle the skin of the legs and chest. In spite of the tediousness of all this detail, I still really like this painting, and my husband says he "loves" it. That is a very high compliment from him!!! None of the above pictures have the color altered in Photoshop, so I hope your monitor shows how beautiful the colors are in this painting. Next time I post him, I hope to have him either completed or very close to completion.

Red Tulip Day - original watercolor commission

The commission piece is complete, and has been approved by the client! I am very happy with the way it has turned out - it is quite impressive since it is so large (41 x 26 inches). 

In order to keep the viewer's main focus on the vase and the flowers, I made the wicker love seat in that background more abstract, which contrasts with the reality of the flowers and vase as well as the wicker table that the vase sits on. This is the same as I have done with the abstract hay bale and the realistic hawks in "Sharp Shinned Hawks", the background leaves versus the realistic berries and foreground leaves in "Saskatoons" and the vegetation outside the window versus the child, Sydney, in "The Wonder of Sydney". 

The plan is to have a white mat and a low profile black metal frame for Red Tulip Day. The client has a black leather couch, and the frame will look great on their wall, which contains one of the colors in the wood planking. The white matting will maintain the light, airy feel that this painting has. 

I have been invited to travel to their home to see the "installation" of this piece, but a 12 hour drive each way and a full time job might mean that I have to forego the pleasure. Sigh! I know they will send me a picture of it in its permanent location, once they return from their overseas trip and hang it.

If you are interested in commissioning a similar piece, please contact me: jogiesbrecht@gmail.com