Rooster Painting-Eighth Day

© Ellen Blonder

I've settled on a bird of paradise flower for the foreground, after considering a heliconia and orchid (see posts below). I like how it mimics the rooster's comb. I'm also laying in the "bones" for the other foliage. I despaired of not photographing enough small banana trees for reference, when, while visiting a friend yesterday, there was the perfect tree in her garden for the upper left corner of this painting. The colors always look flat and awful to me at this point, all the reason I need to keep painting.

Banana Trees with Foreground Filled In

©Ellen Blonder

I spent the next week filling in the foreground foliage and noodling out the ginger flowers. The banana leaves at the top of the painting weren't looking right, so I also spent time repainting them. Below is a close-up of the monkey, looking very concerned, before I added the foliage.

Banana Trees Detail, a Few Days Later

Now that the upper part of the painting is at least roughed in, I've started to add foreground foliage. Philodendron abounds, especially in northern Kauai, and shell ginger even grows along some roadsides. I love the form of the well-named flowers. Using a white pencil, I've sketched a bromeliad-like plant and ferns to paint next.

Banana Trees after Five More Days of Painting

I spent the next five days working on the leaves of the main tree. Banana leaves get shredded by the wind over time, and the tree I used for reference was in a very windy spot. I also added detail to the monkey's fur and the bananas hanging down from the tree. Does everyone know this is how bananas grow? The "blossom" is the red thing hanging at the bottom. Below is a watercolor painting I did that shows the baby bananas tucked between the layers of petals. Eventually, the petals fall off and the bananas grow up on the central stalk.

© Ellen Blonder