Category: Wild Flowers

Cactus Paintings

Water pools upon the paper and waits patiently for color to grace its presence. The color will bring the glistening clear liquid to life and create a new way of looking at the world. Hues will dance and bleed while moving in every direction or groove of the paper. Then, a shape, or form will come to life in the way of a subject. An object of attraction, affection, passion, memory, etc. Art is being made. Life is finding new meaning. Creation is happening. What will these colors form on the paper? Will it look the same to everyone who may gaze upon it? Will all the feelings and emotions people have towards this artwork be the same? No, is the answer to those last two questions. Art is not only a journey for the artist but also an entirely different experience for each person who views the piece that was created. Passion, drive…what are these? The answer: They are different for everyone. Currently, the new motivation or obsession is with desert life. My cactus in particular. I am fascinated by the complexity of the plant. It just sits there, yet, it creates and brings so much life, in and surrounding it.

All paintings will be available soon. Please Contact me if you are interested and I will email you when they are released!

How can something that just sits, silently, waiting to prick and protect itself, also be such an amazing world all on its own? The paddles hold water and liquid to quench the thirst of animals. Birds and bugs burrow into the cactus paddles creating shelter from the elements. The birds that nest inside hope for protection from predators, knowing the spines of the cactus will dissuade any creatures that pass by. However, the desert tortoise will just chomp down regardless of the pointy needles. Interesting. How do they do that? Doesn’t it hurt…even a tiny bit? Reptiles and birds are not the only ones to enjoy the cactus. Atop the paddles bloom beautiful flowers that attract pollinators to the nectar. The pollen brings life back to the bee hives and lifts the spirits of butterflies as well. Once the flowers are touched by the love of these insects, they can produce food. The beaver tail cactus creates amazing prickling pears that can be consumed and enjoyed. This blog is an introduction to my new painting series. I hope you enjoy it! Thank you for reading and have a Marvelous Monday!

-Karen Hilliard

Also, if you would like another way to show support, I have a few options. “Buy me a coffee” which is a way for anyone to contribute to the creative process behind the paintings. Fuel the artist so to speak. Here is the link if you are interested. The funds go to supplies and gas to get out to the trails. I truly appreciate the support and the fact that you are liking these blogs, as well as my art posts. I am working hard to bring you all fresh content! Here is the link to my Instagram where I try to post daily. You can also find me on Facebook at my art page Karen Hilliard Art.

If you would like to, please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! 🙂

Thank you again for all of your support!

Karen Hilliard Art | Blog | Support for the Artist | Art Support — Please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! If you would like to 🙂

Karen Hilliard Art | Blog | Rattlesnakes, Oh My! — Watercolor Journey

Karen Hilliard Art | Blog | Zion Shenanigans — Watercolor Journey

Tags New Blog, watercolor painting

A New Home

Sitting in a turquoise pot at the bottom of a mountain, with a view of beautiful sunsets, rests the cactus formed by one magic paddle. Now the cactus has a new home just outside the city limits. The hustle and bustle of cars and the sound of daily sirens are no longer heard as much. New life has been brought out and bright yellow flowers have bloomed. The blossoming of new beginnings for the cactus are on the horizon. New pollinators have been welcomed and new fruit has been created. The magic paddle now has grown into a mighty cactus. The sprinklers have given the plant a new life and new hope for the future. Dew drops glisten in the morning light and bugs make their way around the spines to see what they can find to eat. This cactus is pure magic. A life all of its own. One plant thriving in the desert. Creating an abundance of life and opportunity for others.

The yellow flowers attract many insects and birds. It is amazing to watch. They open with the rising sun and close with each sunset. The moonlight shines gloriously on the spines and the cactus is illuminated at night. This truly is a mystical plant. A cactus can hold so much uncertainty and pain all the while having hope then resilience. This plant is persistent and shows perseverance daily. Tortoises don’t mind the pain and eat the paddles for hydration even though the plant struggles to protect itself from these very moments. Insects and birds create homes in the paddles and find shelter from the storms. Cactus plants are like little hotels for creatures who need a home. It amazes me how I can sit and watch a cactus for long periods of time. I grew up along the ocean of California and now the Nevada desert has a huge piece of my heart. What is a place you love? Thank you for reading and have a marvelous Monday!!

-Karen Hilliard

If you would like to, please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! 🙂

Thank you again for all of your support!

Tags New Blog, watercolor painting

Prickling Pear Harvest

The boy and the girl were so excited about their magic paddle and how well it was growing. They reminisced about a trip they had taken to Sedona, Arizona where they both tasted the Prickling Pears for the first time. They had hiked through the desert all day and then were walking back to their hotel room when they spied some amazing beaver tail cactus. The boy found some pears on the ground and chose to pick them up. He carried them all the way to the hotel where he proceeded to try and pick each spine out by hand. The girl spent an hour pulling the spines out of his hand while they both smiled at one another. After all the silliness was done, they sat eating the pears while watching the southwest sun set behind the mountains. The taste of the pears will always be delicious because of the moments leading up to trying them. Do you have a special food that brings up such a happy memory for you? Have you noticed that when you try it again, it may taste different? Each time we taste a pear from a cactus we remember how sweet they were that day in Sedona.

Karen Hilliard Art | Blog | Prickling Pear Harvest

Recently, my husband and I picked the pears off of our cactus and tried them. They were not as sweet as we remembered but while we talked about our experience in Sedona, we noticed the flavor of the pears started to get better. It amazes me how such a wonderful memory can bring back sensory details as well as mental ones. Emotional connection is truly amazing. The new painting series I am creating is based on the feelings and moments in time of our Sedona trip. These paintings encompass so many feelings intertwined in the colors and movement of each brush stroke. I hope you will enjoy the journey of our cactus and the prickling pears that are developing this season. Our tortoise also enjoyed some of the fruit last night. We loved having the opportunity to give her a more natural dietary experience. Thank you all for reading and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!!

-Karen Hilliard

If you would like to, please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! 🙂

Thank you again for all of your support!

Tags New Blog, watercolor painting

Color Variations

I think what I love most about sunflowers, other than how happy they make me feel, is all the different ranges of colors they can have. We were lucky enough to grow a red sunflower with a purple stem and beautiful greenish leaves in our garden. This sunflower blossomed alongside our larger yellow flowers. The bees were just as interactive with this one, however, the dark center showed little contrast with the bees. I decided Number 4 in the Sunflower Series would be our wonderful red flower.

Upon this decision, I had no idea how many different colors would grace my painting palette. I had to bring out another palette case in order to reach the values of color this sunflower demanded. I used 5 variations of red, 2 yellows, 2 greens, brown, blue, and 2 different size paint brushes to complete this 4” x 6” Tiny Painting for my website. I chose to use a larger paintbrush this time to work the preliminary space of the center and the petals. Then, I went back in with a size 2/0 brush for my detailed work. Normally I use small paintbrushes for the whole painting but I wanted to try something new. After many layers, and detailed work, I am pleased with how this painting turned out. I decided my next one would be yellow so the website felt fluid with color transitions. What do you think?

Sunflower Series 1 Number 5 • Watercolor Tiny Painting • Karen Hilliard Art • 4 x 6 — AVAILABLE CLICK HERE

Number 5 in the series is an opened up representation of the Number 3 flower that grew right next to the red one. This sunflower bloomed later and opened halfway. It took a whole day to fully open. I love the change in color from Number 3 to Number 5. I can really see the effects the bees had on the flower when they pollinated it. The seeds changed to a darker brown, almost black, and the paint I used had more contrasts of yellow than the first painting. I tried to show the paint tubes in the video I made that I posted on my YouTube channel if you would like to see it. In the past, I just posted videos 1-4 of the Sunflower Series on my YouTube channel, see them here -> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lN8ROdnQZTU

Thank you for wandering through the weeds with me to find these beautiful sunflowers. I hope you enjoyed our adventure and the painting process videos posted on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. Please let me know your thoughts by sending me an email from the Contact Page. Have a great weekend!

-Karen Hilliard

Please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! If you would like to 🙂

Thank you again for all of your support!

Sunflower Series 1 Number 7 • Watercolor Tiny Painting • Karen Hilliard Art • 4 x 6 — AVAILABLE CLICK HERE

Karen Hilliard Art Blog | Sunflower Series 1 | Tiny Paintings | 4x6 | Original Watercolors — AVAILABLE CLICK HERE

Sunflowers and Bees

Waking up every morning to the sound of buzzing bees is amazing. These creatures tirelessly do their job of pollinating every ounce of the sunflower. I was lucky enough to get some photographs of them in flight and landing on the flower. They move quickly, so I was very excited to capture such wonderful moments. As I zoomed in on the photographs I could see the fuzziness of the bees. I wanted the first couple of paintings in the Sunflower Series to show this excitement.

Sunflower Series 1 Number 1• Watercolor Tiny Painting • Karen Hilliard Art • 4 x 6 — UPDATE: SOLD

Number 1 in the series is a close up of the bee working and taking care of the plant. The bee dug its head into the shoots and pollinated each one. I love watching them work. I chose to use the same colors in the flower for the bee to show its natural camouflage. The pollen dusted the bee and top part of the flower with a brilliant yellow. I chose Lemon Yellow from Windsor and Newton Professional Watercolors to show the fluffy pollen look. I had so much fun painting this bee and decided the next painting would be an even closer representation of another bee. While working on this series, I sold the first painting and the little creature flew to a new home on the other side of the nation. Our little Nevada bee turned into a Florida bee for eternity. I wonder where the rest of the bee paintings will fly to next? Will they go around the world? Time will tell. For now, here is the next one in the series…still cozy in our Nevada home.

Number 2 in the series focuses on a bee with pollen packets on its legs. I was fascinated that the bee could continue to fly and continue its job while being weighed down with pollen. I painted the object larger than it is to show its cute little face. I was able to zoom in on the subject and see all the tiny hairs on its head. Creating the face of this bee was my favorite part of the painting. I also enjoyed making very thin lines with many different colors to show the texture of the petals. I hope you are entertained by the videos I have been posting on Facebook and Instagram showing the paintings as well as a bit of information behind the blogs. Please contact me and let me know your thoughts on the blogs, paintings, or videos. I appreciate you taking a walk with me through my garden and marveling at the bees. Have a wonderful day!

-Karen Hilliard

Tags New Blog, watercolor painting

Barrel Cactus Flowers

Red Rock Canyon pops with color throughout the year depending upon rainfall. This summer we were blessed with many storms in July. The barrel cactuses had a second blooming season and the desert was glowing with color. These cactuses have gorgeous yellow flowers and it is fun to watch the bees and bugs pollinate them. In this small work series I decided to paint some close up perspectives of the delicate color variations of these flowers. They are subtle yet beautiful. I love to sit among the desert life and feel tranquility.

Red Rock Canyon Series 1 #5 | Karen Hilliard Art|Watercolor|Tiny Paintings|4x6 — AVAILABLE CLICK HERE

Number 6 in the series is also a close up of the flowers inside a barrel cactus. I used red and blue to create the depth of shadows with a wet on wet technique. I chose to let these colors dry completely before I added the yellow color of the flower. This was a different choice than the other piece of work. As I added the yellow and orange I decided to let it dry, sit, and then layered more orange on top. I used red to detail in the lines of the cactus spines. I tried to recreate the flow of the first painting to leave a feeling of peacefulness. I am pleased to have put my emotions that I felt in the desert into these pieces.

I hope you enjoyed a close up and personal view of these flowers and next time you stop to experience any flower with a closer look. I would love to hear from you about your thoughts on these paintings. My email, Facebook, and Instagram are all on the website at the top. I also have a Contact page and it goes straight to my email. I look forward to hearing from you!

-Karen Hilliard

Please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! If you would like to 🙂

Thank you again for all of your support!

Tags New Blog, red rock canyon, watercolor painting

Flora of Red Rock Canyon

I am fascinated by desert plants and their amazing persistence to survive. On my hikes I have seen plants and trees growing out of crevices on rock walls. The tiniest amount of water can sustain a desert plant. Barrel Cactuses are unique with beautiful yellow flowers on top. In my last blog I wrote about the First Red Rock Canyon small works series. I decided for the third painting in the series to create a detailed perspective of a Barrel Cactus flower.

Red Rock Canyon/Karen Hilliard Art/Blog — AVAILABLE CLICK HERE

I went through many versions in my mind of how I wanted this painting to look. I thought the landscape of the cactus with a yucca behind it would be gorgeous for texture contrast. As I looked through the photos on my phone, I kept zooming in and saving screenshots. I settled on the top of the barrel cactus and its flowers for the composition of this Tiny Painting. The red, yellow, and green combination along with light and dark variants were pleasing to paint.

Barrel Cactuses are beautiful and intertwined. The flowers are embedded in the needles and then bloom upward. Another plant I find interesting are the Juniper Trees. Number 4 in the series is a darker version of a different Juniper Tree than Number 2. This Juniper had more reddish and purple cones than the other painting. I enjoy painting the different perspectives of each tree and changed my color palette for the second painting. I focused on brown and blue for the shadows and then used a layer of green over the darkness.

It is a true joy to talk, or write, about these paintings and my process. I am happy to share my love of the desert and the environment with all of you. I would love to know what you think about the paintings. Just click on the link and you will be able to review them on the website, or you can send me an email! You can also send me an email about a favorite hike you like to venture on, or where you wish to travel to next. Thank you for reading this blog, I hope you enjoyed our walk through Red Rock Canyon, Nevada.

-Karen Hilliard

Please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! If you would like to 🙂

Thank you again for all of your support!

Tags New Blog, red rock canyon, watercolor painting

Valley of Fire Wild Flowers

The palette of colors in the desert is every artist’s dream. The yellow flowers are joined by their complimentary color, purple. The blue primary color can be found throughout the rocks and is matched by it’s companion orange in every piece of sandstone. The red stone of the earth is complemented by the luscious green plants and cacti growing next to it. The first series I created for my Tiny Paintings were the flowers of this park. I wanted to express the beauty I saw surrounding me in a series of small paintings. I love receiving flowers, yet they do not last, so I wanted to represent the love of flowers as something that could hang on a person’s wall forever.

Valley of Fire Series 2 - #10|Karen Hilliard Art|Watercolor|4x6 — AVAILABLE CLICK HERE

The first painting shown below was of the cactus flowers including the plant. I am fascinated by the contrast in colors and how the light and dark dance together. The second and third pieces were close up representations of one cactus flower to show the pollen and life inside the petals. I further wanted to add another species that is prominent in the desert during the spring. Desert Marigolds are the sunshine of the desert. Clumps of yellow set along sandstone paths to brighten up anyone’s day.

Valley of Fire Flowers Series 1 #6 • Tiny Painting • Karen Hilliard Art — SOLD

Valley of Fire Flowers Series 1 #2 • Tiny Painting • Karen Hilliard Art — SOLD

Number 8 was a beautiful white flower with paper thin petals and dark green leaves. The center of the flower had a glorious pollen stem shooting up to the sky. I ended the series with two more cactus flowers because I love the purple and pink in the petals. These colors burst out against the green cactus paddles and intrigues the eyes of anyone looking upon them.

Valley of Fire Flowers Series 1 #8 • Tiny Painting • Karen Hilliard Art — SOLD

As I made this series, I sold eight of the paintings soon after. Knowing that each piece of artwork was bringing a person joy gave me such happiness. I also took 5 of the images and made a greeting card set so people could send each other flowers that would last. I picture these paintings on the customer’s walls, cards up in their homes, and feel like they bring a smile to the person’s face. Sharing my paintings with the world is the best gift I can receive. I am very thankful for everyone’s support and hope these works of art bring you all joy. Thank you for reading and have a Wonderful Wednesday!

-Karen Hilliard

A Couple of Sketches Before the Paintings Were Created.

SPRING GREETING CARDS PICTURED ABOVE 5″ x 7″ CLICK HERE

Please leave your Social Media handle on the “Buy me a Coffee” page so I can thank you in my Instagram/Facebook Stories! If you would like to 🙂

Thank you again for all of your support!

Tags New Blog, watercolor painting