Magnolia Bloom

Magnolia Bloom Painting.

Magnolia Bloom painting was inspired by the actual flower growing in Shadowmyst Art’s spring garden. Long, elegant cream-white petals streaked and edged in burgundy cluster around a deep wine-colored center, framed by strappy, textured green leaves and the bush’s thin grey stems. This Little Girl hybrid is a member of the genus Magnolia, known for the stunning beauty of its usually large flowers, which emerge prior to the foliage in spring and are often fragrant. While shades of pink are the most common bloom color, the Magnolia palette also includes white, yellows, and purples. The result is an elegant, peaceful presence for any garden.

MEDIUM: Digital Painting | STYLE: Painterly Realism | SIZES: 8×10 — 11×14 — 16×20 — Custom size may be available. CLICK HERE  to inquire. | ORIENTATION: Landscape | TOOLS: Procreate, 13″ iPad Pro, Apple Pencil Pro, Giclée Fine Art Archival paper and ink | AVAILABILITY: Prints available | CONTACT SHADOWMYST ART FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

ARTIST’S PROCESS:

Magnolia Bloom painting was painted in Procreate on a 13″ iPad Pro using the Apple Pencil Pro. The artwork employs layered digital brushwork to achieve the depth characteristic of traditional painting. A detailed structural drawing was made of each element, followed by color blocking and multiple rounds of refinement for textures, color, light, and shade. A final pass of subtle highlights and shading was added before merging all layers.

The background element for this piece was handled in a distinct style from the detailed main subject, the bloom, leaves, and branches. An impressionistic approach was chosen, utilizing watercolor washes and the Gaussian Blur tool to create a realized background that subtly hints at the remaining Magnolia bush. This approach ensures that the primary focus of the painting remains detailed, clear, and distinctly the subject of the artwork.

CHALLENGE:

Selecting the background treatment for this piece presented a challenge. The primary objective was to direct the viewer’s attention directly to the Magnolia Bloom and its leaves. A secondary focus was to establish a delicate grey branch pattern that spread out randomly, creating a unified appearance behind the flower. A plain background would leave the bloom and leaves isolated in empty space, resulting in a harshness that would detract from the softness of the flower itself. Incorporating more detailed elements of the magnolia bush behind the bloom would divert attention from the beauty of the primary subject. The solution was to paint the suggestion of the bush behind the flower, leaves, and branches, maintaining a suggested yet muted, soft, and vague background that filled the canvas without disrupting the overall composition’s mood.

The desired effect was achieved through several background layers utilizing the Procreate Soft Round brush at 85% opacity and varying sizes that corresponded to the intended shapes being created in the background. The primary layer was set with a round brush at 50% size to stroke the moss green color across the entire canvas. Subsequently, a layer above it was created with several passes of short watercolor-style strokes in varied tones of the base color to establish depth. Additional layers were placed above these layers to paint soft shapes of magnolia leaves, branches, and small blooms in an impressionistic style randomly throughout the entire canvas. Finally, the Procreate Gaussian Blur tool was applied to the layer at 15% opacity to achieve the desired effect of a realized background that did not compete with the main focus of the piece.

SUBJECTS AND THEMES:
Botanical — Magnolia Bloom — Little Girl Magnolia Hybrid — Cream and Burgundy Petals — Spring Garden — Nature Illustration — Floral Wall Art — CONTACT SHADOWMYST ART FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION