A rose in any form is still a rose?

"Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you."

` Carl Sandburg

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Today , my entire afternoon was in pursuit of time for benefit of family ; explaining to loss adjustor over water seepage claims to house insurance, going thru with maid what to buy for the week's household grocery, taking one son for long lunch at Raju's banana leaf , perusing with another son and condo designer discussing wallpaper /renovations….writing long email to developer over defects and bad rectifications….buying fruits for hubby….

So much so by the evening I was uttterly "senget" (crooked) literally… tired and spent!

Coming home I couldnt wait to get down to painting….doing stuff of no consequence to anyone but in enjoyment for myself!

Wednesdays are always days when I am at my most productive …ARTWISE…..

Obviously because it reminds me that the next day on Thursday is when I have to talk and immerse in art updates with classmates and art teacher over previous week's lessons…ooops, no good if didnt practise mah, heh heh (*.*)

Rose, roses and more rose images have been swirling in my thoughts for the last few days for several reasons :

1) I didnt feel satisfaction over the rose that I painted in class last week.

2) After my EOS DSLR photography class on Sunday, I had plenty of exercise shooting roses in different lighting and exposures .

3) I did tell Ean that I would be painting the roses that she sent with love from UK on my birthday recently

4) though I dont feel strong affinity towards painting nature and flowers, I definitively dislike giving up on something just because I am not good at it yet (O.O)…KIASU mentality I guess , hee hee

5) Last but not least, Susie Short had made it seemed so darn kacang putih (chick peas) easy in her DVD…. how hard can it be?

Erm, here's my dogged 2nd time... attempting realism style yet another round …

Oh oh, it is not as easy as how Ms Suzie Short made it to be~

My rose painting turn out very wishy washy, yucks….even worse than last week's trial!

uh uh…..I'm no good at painting flowers or at any rate, a rose!

Sheeesh, this painting is so flat, lifeless, zero oomph! SIGH~~~

For 3rd rose attempt…I abandon trying to capture its realistic shades…..

Part frustration, part knowing I have to try another route….I just went with my feelings and used one broad flat brush to mix splashes of reds, orange, purple with a tinge of lemon yellow and abit of burnt sienna.

Oooooh, this one I like the outcome….

I enjoyed very much all the randomness and how the brush movements flew around in a flurry….. a much much better interpretation of the essence of the rose…

Completed at 11pm~ I felt assuaged.

So pleased with what I had done , I even stroked off with a brand new signature ….with glee~~~

My realism vs graphical rose, which is better?

I like the latter because I think it is more interesting and more "an ah hah michelle" kind of identity.

For friends who know me well and my sons, do you agree with me?

links to related topic on roses in previous postings :

lessons 11 attempting close up shots

for the love of the rose