Just one palm
Posted: December 20, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized 20 CommentsAs a Canadian girl, palms trees are a mystery to me. Of course, I’ve sketched them many times on various holidays but I’ve never really studied their forms and colours up close. I set up my easel intending to paint a full scene, but decided that it might be more interesting to really look at one tree, and try to paint it in direct watercolour (no pencil) by putting colour next to colour. And it was then that I realized how many colours you can find in a palm. Deep greens, pale yellows, rusts and purples. And that is just in the fronds. The trunks are yet another study in colours and textures. And in case you are curious about brushes, I have tried many but found that a dagger brush works really well for the pointy ends of the fronds.
Shari Blaukopf's Sketchbook 
That is a challenge! I had a dream once about doing just the same thing … painted one brushstroke after another in the perfect color and shape. Of course, I’m nowhere near that ability, but the dream was great! Your palm tree is wonderful!
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Thanks Cindy! They are beautiful, and a challenge, especially when trying to simplify. But really fun to paint, right?
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As a Floridian that paints lots of palm trees, IMHO, you got it! But then theres many varieties of palm trees so the challenge continues. : )
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De, I feel like I’m just getting starting with palms! Now that I see how wonderful they can be to paint!
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As a California girl, I have painted a few palms, although I have painted more oak trees. Anyway, you are right about all the colors one finds in palms. And who does not like their distinctive shapes?
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Thanks Sandy. Apparently there are hundreds of different ones, so it seems that I do have many left to paint. Each one a different shape!
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You have it, Shari! Nice work! 👍
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Thanks Linda!!
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I recently visited Belize. Growing there are palms that look just like old-fashioned ladies’ fans, only huge. I would like to paint those beauties.
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Laura, I have seen those here too. I’ve been meaning to stop and paint one! I love their shapes too!
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Since I grew up in Ohio(Cleveland area), I never saw a palm tree till I married and my in-laws lived in California. I was fascinated at first. But–so many bad times with my mother-in law -(sorry to admit that-) t I don’t want to see palm trees again. And I love trees.
But your painting is lovely. You certainly gave that tree color. Maybe those palm trees are friendly ones.
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Judy, I have no bad associations with palm trees but I’m sorry to hear that you do!
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An absolute winner!!! Fantastic colors especially in the trunk. Happy Holidays.
Frank B
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Happy holidays to you too Frank!!
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This is the coolest palm tree I have ever seen painted! And before I read your post, I was closely looking at your painted tree and was already fascinated with the amount of colors you had in the trunk alone – it really worked great!
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Thanks so much Yvonne!!
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This palm is wonderful! Also as a Canadian I hadn’t seen a palm tree until a short visit to California about 30 years ago. All I remember from that trip was the traffic. Two years ago we went to Florida for long enough to really look at the palms. Wow…so many fronds and trunk grooves and leaf indentations and fringes! My attempted painting looks like a squashed millipede.
I’ll save your painting for inspiration!
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Excellent painting of the palm tree, yeah there are a lot of colours in palms. I guess as the fronds age, they slowly turn yellow, then brown.
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I’ve always admired how you paint palm fronds. There’s a painting from years ago I always loved (will look it up).
This is a marvellous study. I feel the solidity of the tree and all the feathery lightness of moving fronds.
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Thanks so much Alison. I know which one you mean. If the one I think it is, it was sketched on Sanibel as well.
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