Ah February...the month where it can freeze, melt, snow, freeze, melt, warm up, freeze...It's been especially mild here.  I don't mind!  

The Old English word for this month was Solmonath which means mud month!  There are lots of traditions celebrating the return of the light, celebrating hearth and home and expectations of spring like Imbolc or St. Brigids' Day, Candlemas and Ground Hog Day. Then there are other celebrations like Black History Month, Valentine's Day, Flag Day!  A drab and dreary month still holds lots of variety and expectation for the spring!

In celebration, my first flower theme post is this little study in the style of Richard Schmid.  Mr. Schmid is an American artist and a living master.  I have an instructional DVD of his that I view regularly...he is a wealth of information.  

The painting on the left is my own interpretation of  American artist Charles W. Hawthorne's untitled painting on the right.  He was the founder of the Cape Cod School of Art in 1899.  

I needed to know how Hawthorne painted the light on her hat, her pigtails, her chin...I didn't come close to getting the colour the same and my drawing skills need improvement...but I wanted to capture the light... 

And to set people at ease about copying...read this book! And remember...don't sell a copy as your own work...there are copyright rules about that.  Use it as an opportunity to learn!