Milkweed In Flight - Painted En Plein Air

The Story

When I was little, I anxiously waited each fall for these magical seed pods to burst open. I'd stuff them in a big jar and wait for a windy day to open it and watch them fly. This Milkweed plant is in my backyard – right in the middle of the grass! There's 3 different plants I've mowed around all summer. I've monitored them closely waiting for this stage so I could paint the beautiful fluffy seeds.

Technique

Watercolor on toned paper painted en plein air (outdoors). This technique is not totally new to me, but I've never painted one this big or this finished. Since watercolor is transparent and only dark colors show on the toned background, I also used white gouache and a white marker to help bring out the highlights and those beautiful fluffy white parachute seeds.