Description

This is an expressive oil painting of a field of sunflowers, which I painted from memory.

I was the passenger in a car trip during the summer of 2021, as we bombed it across southern France. We were prioritising reaching our dear friend before night fall and didn’t have time to stop. (You know what it’s like, prioritising good people after not seeing them for so long because of the pandemic.)

I stared longingly out the passenger window, as we went past all these amazing fields full of sunflowers. I noticed how most of them are the exact same height, except for the odd few, who rise up above the rest.

This is the second painting I’ve done from this memory. The first one wasn’t planned, I just let it evolve. I wanted to paint something for my sister-in-law, to replace a faded abstract watercolour that was taking up a prime position in her living room. This second painting of sunflowers was a commission, with each flower head to represent each member of the family.

I want to paint more sunflowers like this because the plant has become familiar to me and I know how to treat the shapes. I want to see how my skill evolves.

Sunflowers are just big daisy’s really.