PAPHIOPEDILUM - MMVII

My dear friends N & L have a beautiful home and garden here in the 90210.

Mr. N Has quite a green thumb and his collection of Paphiopedilum, really put on a crowd pleasing show every year. Ive been waiting for more of the blooms to open up to get the full impact of the collection and Mr. N's fantastic display.



I can't wait to get started on paintings and drawings of these specimens as a large group and individually. I'm thinking BIG on this project.
BIG WATERCOLORS, BIG DRAWINGS!!!


It is amazing how the same blooms can look so delicate and soft...


And then so dynamic and bold depending on the light and angles.


Check back soon to how the works come along. Be sure t look at the "previous posts / archives" for more images of my work.
Merci to N & L.

Orchid Is The New Black

I like to sometimes try different materials and techniques other than the watercolors to capture the drama and beauty of a particular orchid. Like this Grammatophyllum speciosum .




I love drawing and I love color pencils. Everything looks great drawn in color pencil. What makes this drawing super dynamic is the fact that it is drawn on BLACK paper. Kind of along the lines of a Velvet Elvis concept. The blooms really pop from the background . The shadows on the petals are not darkened in, that is actually where the black paper shows through when there is no drawing.

Enjoy, More to come!

Please contact me for more information and regarding purchasing available works. I accept commissions of all types and sizes. I can be reached at my email address
parnellcorder@hotmail.com

ART FILE 11/1/07

I found this piece while I was looking for another painting for a client in my Art Files.

Some time ago, THE LOS ANGELES ARBORETUM asked me to come up with some designs for a poster to honor their annual Iris festival which happens every spring. I forgot how flash this piece was so when I rediscovered it so, I knew I had to post it. They wound up going with a different painting I presented to them for the poster but I think this one convinced them I was the one for the job.




The painting is made on three different panels of paper. Inspired by traditional Japanese screens, I made an arrangement of several different varieties of Iris throughout the gold metallic back ground to evoke a sense of a natural garden atmosphere. The Iris are painted in watercolor while the background is Gold Metallic Acrylic

It is a big work once all assembled measuring a little over 10 feet long and over 2.5 feet high.

Here are the panels individually, From Left to Right.

Left Panel


Center Panel


Right Panel

LAELIA ON THURSDAY

Laelia

Laelia
purpurata

ORCHIDELIC BABY!

I'm going for some mind blowing inspiration, man. Those readers in the Southern California area should check it out! See their web sites below for more info.

"The 2007 show will include over 15 vendors from around the world selling orchids and supplies and over 30 orchid displays highlighting the new Rose Hills Foundation Conservatory for Botanical Science that opened in October 2005. The conservatory will be home to numerous orchid displays, tropical plants, and educational and laboratory space."

"Eight southern California orchid societies will be working with the Southland Committee to present the orchid show. Orchid displays from these societies will be spread around the botanical center and conservatory, emphasizing the diversity and expertise of the amateur orchid grower here in the Los Angeles area."

Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens, October 19-21, 2007.
1151 Oxford Road
San Marino, CA 91108
(626) 405-2100

ORCHIDELIC:
http://orchidshow.org

The Huntington Library and Botanical Gardens Website Link:

http://www.huntington.org

VANDA

This is a Vanda Hybrid (Reverend Masso Yamada). The Vanda orchid
group is made up of about 50 different species of Monopodial orchids. They have showy long lasting blooms in a large variety of colors. Watercolor on paper. 11" x 11"

Parnell Corder

Another inspirational image from the Garden of M. I cant wait to get to work on this as a large watercolor

Prosthechea

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

• •

Prosthechea is a genus in the orchid family (Orchidaceae). The name is derived from the Greek word prostheke (appendix), referring to the appendage on the back of the column.

The genus Prosthechea has only recently (1997; published in 1998) been reestablished by W. E. Higgins as a distinct genus (see references), but some species were later transferred to EuchileEuchile mariae and Euchile citrina) by Withner (1998). Previously, the species had been included in different genera : Anacheilium, Encyclia, Epidendrum, Euchile, Hormidium and Pollardia. The status as genus was confirmed by recent data, based on molecular evidence (nuclear (nrITS) and plastid (matK and trnL-F) DNA sequence data) (C. van den Berg et al. 2000) (e.g.,

This a neotropical epiphytic genus, occurring from Florida and Mexico to tropical America.

The roots of all Prosthechea species possess a velamen (a thick sponge-like covering) differentiated into epivelamen and endovelamen. Flavonoid crystals were observed in both the roots and leaves. The erect stems form flattened or thickened pseudobulbs. There are 1 to 3 terminal, sessile leaves. The leathery blade is ovate to lanceolate.

The flowers form an apical, paniculate raceme with a spathe at the base of the inflorescence . There is a great variety in the flowers of this genus. They may be attached to the stem by a peduncle or may be sessile. They can flower on the raceme at the same time or successively. They can be resupinate (i.e. turned upside down) or not.

The sepals are almost equal in length, while the petals can be much slender. The lip is pressed closely (adnate to proximal) to half of the column and shows a callus (a stiff protuberance). The column is 3- to 5-toothed at its top.

The are four, almost equal pollinia with an inverted egg shape. There are four stalks (or caudicles) in two pairs. The beak is entire, curved into a half circle and covered with viscous glycoside crystals.

The fruits consists of ellipse-shaped to egg-shaped , 1-locular, 3-winged capsules.

Stanhopea veneshiana

The finished painting of the Stanhopea
provided by my friend M. Watercolor on Arches, 30" x 22" You can see photographs of the actual specimen in the previous post- "An Orchid Outing" below.

Not an Orchid

As I have said before I create other paintings as well as the Orchids. This is a new work I have just completed. I had an arrangement of Casablanca Lilies and I just could not resist the lush curves and turns of the white petals. This work is also different for me as it is ACRYLIC on paper instead of watercolor. The paper size is 30" x 45".

AN ORCHID OUTING

My friend M. not only lives in a very cool historically significant 1920's Adobe home here in LA but he is also an avid Orchid enthusiast. He cultivates many varieties of orchids and so the other day I decided to pay him a visit and see what was happening in his Orchid collection.


I wanted to take the opportunity to photograph different specimens for reference materials to be used for future paintings. Knowing that M. has a lot more going on in his orchid collection than I do, I knew I was in for a special treat. I was not disappointed. Suspended from an exotically turned branch was an outstanding example of Stanhopea veneshiana (I hope I got that right).

It was not opened upon first viewing but...

Two days later M. called and said to come back as it had opened up to a spectacular presentation.


Not only was it beautiful in form and shape the fragrance was wild! A strange mix of Chocolate and Mint.



My thanks to M.
Enjoy and stay tuned for more images from M."s garden plus more paintings inspired by this wonderfull collection and great friend.

Click to see more information:
Stanhopea

POWER FLOWER

A SPLASH OF COLOR

HOW TO #5 FINISH LINE

Here is the finished product. It normally does not take as long as these posts have taken to appear for me to complete a watercolor like this one. Check back to see new paintings and other Orchid happenings.

HOW TO #FOUR

Here are a couple of images as the painting progresses. Enjoy!

HOW TO #3

I use liquid watercolors from tubes like this. I like the consistency of the paint. It also allows immediate intense color straight from the tube when I want it.



The watercolor is squeezed out on to tin palettes like these. I can arrange the colors in my own color wheel placing color and groups of colors in places where they are most useful to me. After a while the tin becomes a bit overcrowded and muddy like the one on the left. When that happens I just rinse the entire thing off with water and start over.



I start putting down layers in different areas . Working in different areas at the same time on the painting makes it come together pretty fast. Painting white blooms on a white piece of paper can also be a little tricky. It is a difficult balance to give the blooms the depth of color but still retain the appearance of a white flower. Overworking the area I run the risk of it becoming cloudy and dull.

Check back for more progress.

HOW TO # TWO

I create my watercolor images on Fabrianno or Arches 140lb watercolor paper. The paper size is 22 x 30 inches -a size I am comfortable working on but I work in many sizes. The paper needs to be strong enough to handle large amounts of washes of water and repeated applications in particular areas and not get too distorted. I really like the rough edges on these papers it looks great once the works are floated in a frame for hanging.



I work on a flat table in my studio facing the window making use of the natural light. I begin by closely examining the specimen and lightly sketch out the composition on the paper. Sorry for the poor quality image. it was difficult to capture the drawing delicacies with out washing them out or having to manipulate it in another program and have it come out not looking like a pencil drawing. I sometimes take liberties with proportion or placement of the blooms to the leaves and roots so I can create a more dynamic composition. I try to draw as lightly as possible and minimize the amount of pencil marks with out sacrificing details. I keep the actual specimen on the table next to me to continually refer to during the entire process. It is a great way to spend the day.

HOW TO #1

Several people have asked to see images of works in progress to see how I come up with a finished illustration.
I like to work with natural light and Im very fortunate to have a great studio space to work in with plenty of natural, Southern California sunshine. I also like to work from living specimens like this White Phalaenopsis which just opened up the other day. Friends and other Orchid lovers like myself are always willing to share a blooimg plant for documentation when I lack live resource materials from my own Orchid collection. Sometimes I venture into new territory like the palm which I posted previously. Check back to see my progress. I will get into more details about materials I use and how I apply them.

FROM THE SHADOWS

It has been a while since I have had any luck with my collection of Phalaenopsis Orchids. I lost many due my mistake of placing them in an area of the garden which I thought would be a perfect growing spot for them to flower. After several relocations and more casualties Ive been able to spend more time paying closer attention to their needs and I'm getting some positive results. Several specimens have spikes with healthy blooms breaking open.

PHALAENOPSIS
The generic name means "Phalaen[a]-like" and is probably a reference to the genus Phalaena, the name given by Carolus Linnaeus to a group of large moths; the flowers of some species supposedly resemble moths in flight. For this reason, the species are sometimes called Moth orchids.
They are native throughout southeast Asia from the Himalayan mountains to the islands of Polillo and Palawan of the Philippines and northern Australia. Orchid Island off Taiwan is named after this orchid. Little is known about their habitat and their ecology in nature since little field research has been done in the last decades.


Phalaenopsis amabilis (Moon Orchid)
Most are epiphytic shade plants; a few are lithophytes. In the wild they are typically found below the canopies of moist and humid lowland forests, protected against direct sunlight, but equally in seasonally dry or cool environments. The species have adapted individually to these three habitats.
Phalaenopsis shows a monopodial growth habit. An erect growing rhizome produces from the top one or two alternate, thick and fleshy, elleptical leaves a year. The older, basal leaves drop off at the same rate. The plant retains in this way four to five leaves. If very healthy, they can have up to ten or more leaves. They have no pseudobulbs. The raceme appears from the stem between the leaves. They bloom in their full glory for several weeks. If kept in the home, they usually last two to three months, which is considered quite a long time.

DORITAENOPSIS

Doritaenopsis (pronounced)
doh-RYE-ten-OPP-sis
is a manmade intergeneric hybrid between Doritis and a Phalaenopsis.

PAPHIOPEDILUM SAMPLER

The slipper orchids, with their distinctive modified lip or "pouch", have long been highly prized in horticulture. They are cultivated throughout the world, and countless hybrids have been produced from the 80 or so species.
Clockwise from top:
Paphiopedilum (sukhakulii x Virgo)(hybrid)
Paphiopedilum tonsum
Paphiopedilum venustum var.measuresianum
Paphiopedilum maudiae (hybrid)
Paphiopedilum gael (hybrid)

Pay attention. There will be a quiz after.

PLEIONE speciosa

Adding To The Grid

Militoniopsis roezlii was discovered in 1873.
www.parnellcorder.blogspot.com

Something New

I have been working on this piece in between the orchid paintings. It is a larger piece, 26" high and 41" wide. It is close to actual size of the palm in the garden.

Sunday Cymbidium

This is a new approach with the treatment of the leaves. Its a bit more "designed" than a direct depiction of the plant. I think it works well. Parnell Corder.

Orange Orange Orange

Here is another example of Vuylstekeara Cambria. This genus was named after the famous Belgian orchid collector Charles Vuylsteke in 1911. He raised many Hybrid Orchids and created the first Bigeneric Hybrid between Odontoglossum and Cochlioda.

Vuylstekeara Cambria

I decided to focus on the bloom alone on this painting. The paper size is 11" x 11" . I would like to do more like this and create an entire grid wall of them say, 20 paintings or so.

More To Inspire

ORCHID GIVING

This is an earlier work in more of a softer, wash style than the current paintings I create. I am donating this painting to the
THE VENICE FAMILY CLINIC ART WALK & AUCTIONS.
The clinic here in Los Angeles provides free medical services to tens of thousands of low-income adults, childern and seniors who have no private medical insurance. More info at www.veniceartwalk.info

A Brand New Day

Brassia

Brassias are commonly known as Spider Orchids.

Orchid Art

From The Orchid Files

Full Bloom

The Cymbidiums in the garden are in full bloom along with a couple of new paintings. There are aprox. 10 vases with many spikes with a variety of colours and shapes. Click on the photos for the Full view of a select few.