Peony 2012

Nancy Herman

oil on canvas board

9" x 12"

The Peony is a very complicated flower with a lot going on that at first doesn't make visual sense.  Only after several hours painting this one did I see the order in all the shades of white.

"The peony is named after Paeon (also spelled Paean), a student of Asclepius, the Greek god of medicine and healing. Asclepius became jealous of his pupil; Zeus saved Paeon from the wrath of Asclepius by turning him into the peony flower." - Wikipedia

The Greeks seem to have had a lot of fun imagining what their Gods were doing and deciding what and why to name their favorite things.

The image of this painting is slightly cut off on the right side as it doesn't fit in my scanner perfectly.