"Three Sunflowers" is an original, signed acrylic painting on a gallery-wrapped canvas by artist Michael Arnold. Sunflowers are such vibrant subject matter, but have short lives. I wanted to give life to these three very different sunflowers. Sunflowers are the chameleons of the botanical world. There are hundreds of different varieties, colors and shapes. The center of the sunflower in the lower quadrant of the painting is my favorite center I have painted even though it is not that realistic. I also really liked the upper left sunflower and the way the disc floret seems almost alive as the future seeds wiggle in the sky. The soft tones give the painting a peaceful natural feel. Be sure to look at the additional views to see the details on the ring in the center of the flower. The painting makes a bold statement on any wall where it is displayed. "Three Sunflowers" is also available as the front of note cards and the prints can be purchased here. This artwork was created using acrylic paint on a high quality wrapped canvas. Acrylic paint works very well on stretched canvas. When purchasing artwork many people aren't sure what the difference is between acrylic and oil paintings. The main difference between acrylics and oil paints is the inherent drying time. Oils allow for more time to blend colors and apply even glazes over underpaintings. This slow drying aspect of oil can be seen as an advantage for certain techniques, but in other regards it impedes the artist trying to work quickly. The fast evaporation of water from the acrylic paint film can be slowed with the use of acrylic retarders. Retarders are generally glycol or glycerin-based additives. Oil paints tend to require the addition of a toxic solvent, such as mineral spirits or turpentine to thin the paints and clean up tools, though relatively recently water soluble oil paints have been developed for artist use. Secondly, oil paint films become increasing yellow and brittle, and will lose their flexibility in a few decades. Acrylics can be used on many surfaces without a medium- layer. They allow sharp brush-strokes but also a more delicate shading, although it is more difficult to create a smooth change between different shades. They are usually very bright. Although the permanency of acrylics is sometimes debated by conservators, they appear more stable than oil paints.  

Purchase Price $625