Guardians
30×40″
©2010 Lucinda Howe
www.lucindahowe.com
$2,400

In South Carolina we have had record low temperatures, a few snow flakes and lots of rain in the last two weeks.  Today it was 70 degrees and sunny.   Who can keep up?  But the plants know that spring is almost here.  Trees are budding and the forsythia is beginning to bloom.  Since the weather changes so quickly from winter to summer here, spring will come and go before we can blink and it will be time to put in summer annuals.

This painting of two Abyssinian bananas in a local garden inspires me to think of bold tropical foliage for my summer plantings.   They provide upright structure among lower plants and the translucent leaves have a red glow when backlit by the sun.  I began this painting with transparent washes of red acrylic paint to take advantage of light reflecting off the white canvas and then added opaque blues and greens for contrast.

Guardians is on display at Best Mattress at 2930 Devine Street in Columbia, South Carolina.   Stop by and see the painting if you need some inspiration for your summer gardening plans.