Tulip drawings

"Number 4"; oil pastel on paper; 22 x 30"; 2017

"Number 2"; graphite and conte on paper; 22 x 30"; 2017

  On my way to the studio one morning I picked a pair of parrot tulips from the front yard and brought them with me. Unsure of what I would do with them, I let them hang around my studio for a few days. Their intoxicating colors and shapes suggested I try my hand drawing them with oil pastels. At the moment there are four completed drawings in the series - each with a pair of panels on a single sheet of creamy Strathmore paper.

  As the tulips age I am able to record how they change. The petals, no longer a tight bell shape, have opened and their ends are beginning to roll back upon themselves. The rich colors are fading and darkening in some spots. I am moving studios this weekend, and I am afraid my flowers won't be able to make the journey. The series may come prematurely to an end; but I am still hoping to finish one more pair of panels when I work today.