I find it very rewarding trying to interpret a customer’s ideas. This painting is one of a series of large watercolour commissions for a private collector - they are all of a similar design with a circular focal image surrounded by a more stylised border and calligraphy. The rainforest-orchid-hummingbird theme was inspired by the paintings of 19th century artists such as Marianne North and M J Heade. I find the adventures of some of these early plant hunters fascinating – their insatiable curiosity for discovering new species to catalogue and paint, especially the intrepid North who travelled alone with her painting materials, hampered by Victorian dress. Following the Victorian theme, the design around the circle was my interpretation of the lovely botanical wallpapers of that time which were influenced by Chinese paintings of flowers and birds.
The calligraphy words - "Those who find beauty in all of nature will find themselves at one with the secrets of life itself." are a quote from L Wolfe Gilbert.
