“Moth Orchids”, 2022

James Brown

“Moth Orchids”, 2022

Oil on canvas

Size: 50.5 x 61 cm

Although the idea of painting flowers was not unusual for me, as I have painted many in the past, the choice to paint these particular flowers—Phalaenopsis (aka “moth orchids”)—was driven by a strong memory of seeing them in a closed florist shop during an evening stroll. They were displayed on a stand at the back of the darkened shop, but stood out from the darkness by the brilliance of their white flowers. If the flowers were “properly” lit they may not have caught my eye, but the way that they glowed in the half-light of the shop left a strong impression on me. In retrospect, the common name of the flowers, “moth orchids”, seems very appropriate for how they looked in the dim light.

By intention, the hatched strokes used in the flowers’ background was my way of suggesting the softness of the light as well as the lack of clarity in how I saw the flowers at the time.