Yellow and White Irises Watercolor Painting

There are only two types of bearded iris that bloom in my garden - purple and yellow with white. I rescued the rhizomes a couple of years ago from where they were growing in a spot that had become shady over the years. Iris don't like shade and they had stopped blooming long ago.

Now they are in full sun and I'm pleasantly surprised that despite previous years of neglect, they bloom beautifully!

The 6x4 inch purple iris painting I recently did needed a companion piece, so yellow are next...

I start with a pale-ish  green background, which will most likely become darker since the flowers are a light color. Then I paint the leaves with a mix of blues and yellow.

Next are the yellow "falls" and stems and a flower bud or two:

I add some shading on the white upper petals using the same blue colors I used in the background. It works nicely to drop yellow paint into the blue shadows while they are still wet - or vice versa!

Below is the finished painting. I did add some dark colors to the background behind the white uppers. The contrast in value helps them stand out.

"Yellow and White Irises" is for sale in my Original Art Shop.

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I'm happy to take custom orders. Please contact me for a custom painting of your pet, home, garden, grandkids, favorite vacation spot or whatever your heart desires.
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