
Pansies, comes from the French word « pensées » which means « thoughts ». Imagine the number of thoughts that cross your mind every ten minutes… a veritable forest of thoughts.
Pansies, comes from the French word « pensées » which means « thoughts ». Imagine the number of thoughts that cross your mind every ten minutes… a veritable forest of thoughts.
It was the rainbow gave thee birth,
And left thee all her lovely hues ;
( Excerpt from ‘The Kingfisher’ by W.H Davies.)
Fleurs attablées. Les fleurs joyeuses. 2020. J.Harms. Acrylic on paper. 40×50 cm.
Some flowers for you.
Table fleurie. Les fleurs joyeuses *. 2020. J.Harms. Acrylic on paper. 40x50cm.
A bouquet of happy brain chemicals for you and you and you….
* « Les fleurs joyeuses » (Joyful flowers) is a subtitle I give all the bouquets I paint.
Pivoines et tulipes. Les fleurs joyeuses. 2016. J.Harms. Oil on Canvas. 45.5x 54.5 cm.
A floral revelry….
Roses et anémones. Les Fleurs Joyeuses. 2016. J.Harms. Oil on Canvas. 45.5x 54.5cm.
I paint flowers too. Rarely though I must say. Bouquets, offered for birthdays or Christmases, created by my eldest sister, an amateur florist, with a keen eye on color. The painting of flowers demands a whole other perspective, a different eye. Gone are the comfortable lines of urban landscapes, the reassuring perspective of a countryside, the simple color spectrums. Painting flowers is like mapping a whole new continent, discovering endless new shapes and hues, and doing everything possible not to get distracted by the everchanging perspective of the living thing. You need special gear to undertake such a task. In my case, oil paint and canvas are my chosen tools.
Peonies on the grey. 2015. J.harms. 18×24 cm. Oil on canvas board.
I am lucky to count flower lovers in my family. Vases never stay empty for long around my home. I started painting flowers to ‘wash my eyes’ in between my other paintings. Simply changing my usual medium from acrylic to oil is like visiting a new place. Oil has never been my favorite medium but the colorful pigments have a quality to them that I have not found in acrylics. Every time I prepare to paint a new bouquet, I experience something akin to pure joy.