Bird of Paradise Botanical Painting Strelitzia Reginae

This painting of Bird of Paradise is a commission for clients who live in Thailand. I wish I could grow this plant in my garden, but unfortunately, it's much too cold where I live.

The flowers bear a resemblance to tropical birds with their beak-like bracts from which bright orange sepals and blue petals emerge. They are pollinated by birds, especially sunbirds (which are similar to hummingbirds). The leaves look like banana leaves.

All in all, they are a very interesting and brightly pretty flower!
To see how I paint a detailed illustration of Strelitzia reginae (the botanical name), read on. Or skip to the finished painting.

Hydrangea Botanical Watercolor Painting

My  'Annabelle' hydrangeas, a dwarf type of "Hills of Snow", bloomed beautifully this summer (as they always do). But I didn't have a chance to paint them until there was only one single bloom left that was still white. They turn green after a while, once they are spent.

So all were green but one when I finally had the chance to do a painting. I decided to do a botanical, which means lots of detail, but I'm SO happy with how it turned out! (you can click the image to see it larger).

'Hydrangea aborescens' watercolor painting

Here's how I paint this beautiful bloom:

Red Dahlias Botanical Painting

Late summer and fall flowers include pretty dahlias like this stunning red variety. To do this piece, I went out to the gardens to paint these from life in order to see all the details for this botanical painting.

• You can get a print of Dahlias at Prints.ZehOriginalArt.com in the botanical section. Have a beautiful day!

More botanical paintings

Bee Balm Flowers - Monarda, Botanical Painting

Bee Balm is a nice flower to have for color in July and early August. The red varieties are especially attractive to hummingbirds. The flowers and leaves are great in a potpourri and are used for medicinal teas.

In this painting, I've added a bee to the topmost flower. There is never a moment while the sun is out that these flowers are without bees!

Orange Daylily Botanical Painting Demonstration

This beautiful double petaled day lily from my garden will make a nice subject for a demonstration of a botanical painting. Since botanicals are done from the live plant, I have cut one and brought it inside.
Come along and I'll show you how I paint it. I'll paint it to size 7" x 5".

Lavender Flowers watercolor botanical painting

This is one of my favorites for its lovely scent. I have lavender growing along the gravel path to my studio and delight in it daily.

The bees like it too and I've added one to the painting. The lavender flowers are rarely without a number of them collecting nectar from the blossoms.

• You can get the print at Prints.ZehOriginalArt.com in the botanical section. Thanks for stopping by today!

Pink Daylily botanical watercolor painting

At this time of year, daylilies reign in my garden.

At least eight different varieties are blooming now and they really brighten up the place with their orange, yellow and pink hues. This one I like for it pale pink color and yellow center. Delicate and delightful!

Sundrops Evening Primrose Watercolor Painting

Though these are often called Evening Primrose, Sundrops bloom brightly from morning until late afternoon while Evening Primrose is the wild version that blooms late in the day.

Whenever I paint Sundrops, I must be sure to start early or else they will close up on me before my eyes! With their bright yellow cupped flowers they remind me of large buttercups.

• TYou can get the print at Prints.ZehOriginalArt.com in the botanical section. Thanks for stopping by today!

Wild Daisies Botanical Painting - Chrysanthemum leucanthemum

Wild daisies are popping up everywhere and they were begging to be painted!

I always leave the wild daisies that I see growing on the edges of the lawn. It's good for the butterflies and bees to have some native wild flowers in addition to whatever has been planted in the garden.
For this piece, I clipped a few to bring into the studio to paint.

Pink Rose, Rosa Botanical Painting

This is a favorite rose of mine and I wish I could remember the species. It has been in my garden for many years. I remember going to a local nursery with a friend and just could not leave without purchasing it. The color is such a soft, pretty pink and the scent light, fragrant and delectable!

It was a joy to paint this lovely flower - even when it fades, the petals will still be so fragrant that I will use them in a potpourri.

• This original botanical painting is 7"x5" and is done with watercolor and a touch of colored pencil to create realistic depth.  You can get this painting or print at Shop.ZehOriginalArt.com in the botanical section. Thanks for stopping by and have a beautiful day.

Rosa rugosa, Beach Roses Botanical Watercolor Painting

I'm so happy to see the rugosas blooming! They remind me of the beach since they bloom along the shore. I have two shrubs; these are from the smaller shrub. Though it doesn't grow very tall, it has prettier flowers for a painting.

To the left is the branch I clipped to bring inside for this botanical. There was a firefly on it and tonight while posting this, I see their lights winking out in the yard. Roses and fireflies mean summer is near!

You can get this botanical as a painting or print in my shop at Zeh Original Art Shop.

Pink Azaleas Botanical Painting

Even though a late frost damaged many of the blossoms on my azalea shrubs, there were many that survived near the ground. So before those were gone too, I picked some to do this painting.

We call them azaleas, but botanically they are Rhododendron.

• This 5"x7" painting is done from the live plant using mostly watercolor, but a bit of colored pencil in the details.  You can see my botanical prints at Prints.ZehOriginalArt.com in the botanical section. Thanks for stopping by. Have a lovely day!

Dicentra - Bleeding Hearts Botanical Painting

My dicentra is blooming right now in the shade garden and is so pretty.

This time of year is perfect to paint botanicals as they should be done from the live plant, not a photograph. There are so many flowers blooming right now that there are plenty to paint. I enjoyed painting these bleeding hearts with their bright pink color. To the left are some I used as reference for this painting.

• This botanical watercolor painting is actually a mix of a watercolor base and a bit of colored pencil for highlights and detail. It is size 5"x7". You can get this painting or print at Shop.ZehOriginalArt.com in the botanical section. I hope you have a lovely day!

Crab Apple Blossoms, Malus, botanical painting

These beautiful blossoms are from my crabapple tree which is in bloom. If you like this painting, you can order a print or a painting. Just use the contact link in the sidebar or at the bottom of this page to contact me. Thanks and have a lovely day!

Pansies, Viola, Botanical painting

The other day, I stopped at the hardware store and saw they now have pansies for sale. I love this time of year when the weather is still cool because this is what pansies like! So I just had to get some and plant them in a big pot in my garden. And I just had to paint them too. As botanical illustrations are done from the live plant under controlled lighting, I brought the pot inside to do this detailed botanical painting.

• This 5"x7" painting is done with watercolor and a touch of colored pencil for depth of color and detail. You can see my flower paintings in my shop on Etsy. Thanks for visiting my blog today.