From fresh flowers on the stem – to preserving them with paint on canvas
ART INSTRUCTOR NANCY Nelson transitions the colors from her paint palette to her finished product – an impressionistic painting of her floral arrangement.
Twenty-one area women took the opportunity to express to their creativity with flowers during an event held Thursday evening, August 14, in the Mountain Lake Golf Course Clubhouse, and sponsored by the Mountain Lake Golf Club. The Golf Club also provided refreshments over the course of the three-hour lesson.
Taught were floral flourishes that included both fresh flowers on the stem – to preserving them forever with paint on a canvas.
Those participating first created a floral arrangement of a pair of Gerber daisies and a trio of corkscrew willows in clear glass vases – accented by choice of colorful ribbon twisted into bows. Instructing this part of the evening’s work was Nene Smestad of Mountain Lake Floral.
Then, Nancy Nelson, former Mountain Lake Public School art teacher, took center stage as she led the women in developing impressionistic paintings of their arrangements. In the “pointed” spirit of French impressionist painters Claude Monet, Edouard Manet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Nelson had the artists begin their work on the canvas by generating a background with a white-and-brown paint mix applied by brush. The layering of the art work was completed by Q-tip and included dabbled depth of painting – with color frosted in with dabs of color.
“In impressionism,” explained Nelson, “the eye does the work. The dabbed paint leaves the impression of color.”
The students then took the ends off of their Q-tips – using the bare tip to sign their paintings.
Below are additional photos from the evening:
NENE SMESTAD OF Mountain Lake Floral, leads the 21 women in the presentation of their Gerber daisy/corkscrew willow floral arrangements, displayed in clear glass vases with colorful bow accents.
A LINE-UP of some of the floral arrangements await their preservation for posterity as an impressionistic painting on canvas.
ERICA SCHROEDER LAYS DOWN the background of the painting, a mix of white and brown paint.
EMILY ADRIAN HAS a laser-like focus on her canvas displayed on the easel.
RACHEL JANZEN BEGINS “dotting” the pointed shape of her vase on her canvas with a Q-tip using a mix of white and brown paints.
SISTERS TOGETHER create their respective impressionistic views of their floral arrangements. At left, Cassondra Harder and at right, Brittany Winters.
CHERYL HIEBERT IS hard at work layering and filling and providing depth perception for her vase, bow, flowers and willows.
NANCY NELSON, STANDING at right, spends time working the room assisting her students.
TAKING A CLOSE look at her art work is Rachel Friesen.
WITH HER FLORAL arrangement set directly in her line of sight, Janet Wolff carefully dabs in the color of each Gerber daisy petal.
MARY NEWTON LAYS her canvas flat on the table to apply color to the petals of her Gerber daisies.
ERICA SCHROEDER’S CANVAS has changed a great deal from the earlier photo of her painting the background. In this shot, the bright orange and red Gerber daisies spring forth on her painting.
THE FINISHED PRODUCT – the handiwork of Christina Hanson – as attested to by her signature at the bottom right of the paint canvas.
