top of page
![[Original size] Black White Elegant Greenery Wedding Banner Landscape (48 × 18 in)-3.png](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/2b2cf3_d12f0449be194a6992802eca0c15a274~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_974,h_292,al_c,q_85,usm_1.20_1.00_0.01,enc_avif,quality_auto/%5BOriginal%20size%5D%20Black%20White%20Elegant%20Greenery%20Wedding%20Banner%20Landscape%20(48%20%C3%97%2018%20in)-3.png)
100 Roses
I'm musing over the possibility of painting 100 roses at approximately the same size each. Here are first 13 finished roses. Do you think I can make it to 100? It's been about 8 months since the start of the project. Each rose takes about 30 hours to complete. Check back every once in a while to see how it's going.
click/tap image to view full-sized
Rosa Queen of Sweden
Some roses feel really magical when they first begin to open. 'Queen of Sweden' is one cultivar that I love to watch open. From the very first time I saw this rose blooming in the Farmers Branch Rose Gardens I knew it needed to be painted. It was challenging to capture the snowy white outer petals. Sometimes I think white is the most challenging color to paint.
11x11
watercolor on paper
11x11
watercolor on paper
Giant Hybrid Tea Rose
One of the best times to see roses where I live is in December. I found this rose at the Dallas Arboretum close to Christmas. Its blooms were about the size of tea saucers. This one was approximately 5-6 inches at its widest and so heavy that it pulled its branch almost to the ground.
Rosa Moonlight (HM)
Rosa Moonlight is a beautiful musk rose, bred for its fragrance. I found this cluster along a cemetery fence. Tinged with the softest pinks, this white rose is silky and reflective. I was really attracted to its habit of growing dense clusters of blooms.
15x22 inches
Watercolor on Paper
15x22 inches
Watercolor on Paper
The Poet's Wife
My favorite thing about this rose is the way the petals on the outside turn to a soft white as it opens. It's a David Austin rose and many of their roses fade to a lighter color on the outer petals. It gives these roses a beautiful contrast when you see them tucked against the darkness of the leaves.
Untitled Red Rose
For the ninth rose, I chose a red floribunda that was blooming in the Farmers Branch, Texas rose garden. I'll still need to do a little research to find out the cultivar name.
11x15
Watercolor on Illustration Board
11x15
Watercolor on Illustration Board
Rosa Love Song
This is a floribunda rose that I found in California last year. It blooms in beautiful clusters that remind me of a florist bouquet. This is one of those roses that really takes your breath away when you see it in person. Its lavender and mauve colors are soft and subtle.
11x15 Watercolor on Paper
11x15 Watercolor on Paper
Peach Drift Rose
The surprising thing about roses, is their hardiness. When I talk to people about roses, they often mention how difficult they are to grow. That might be true about some roses, but new cultivars are bred for climate and pest resistance. The drift rose is a good example of a tough rose. I found this one in a parking lot median in the heat of a Dallas summer. It was thriving in just a bit of pea gravel.
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
Rosa Midnight Blue
Here is another beautiful rose from the Huntington Gardens. It is difficult to see the beauty of this rose's color in daylight. With a shiny sun, the rose looks almost black. But if you can view it under cloud cover, gorgeous pinks and purples emerge.
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
Rosamundi
This is the first rose I painted from my recent trip to the Huntington Rose Garden in Pasadena, CA. It is a Gallica rose also known as Gallica Versicolor.
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
Rosa Dortmund
Rosa Dortmund is a beautiful climber. This rose will overtake walls and fences with its elegant clusters of simple blooms. I love it for its lush growth pattern, stunning true red color and bright white ringed centers. It also smells lovely.
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
Rosa Falstaff
This vibrant rose is from the Farmers Branch Rose Garden's trial plantings of David Austin Roses. It was one of the few blooms flourishing in the 102 degree Texas heat this summer.
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
Simple Roses
This is a simple 5-7 petaled rose growing in the front flower bed at my house. I don't know what it is named.
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
Rose Duchesse de Brabant
This is the first rose in the series, inspired by a climbing rose from my own garden. In real life, this rose plant is about seven feet tall and has trampled its trellis.
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
15x11
Watercolor on Paper
bottom of page