Still life with lotuses 18 x 24 oil on linen

Lotuses are one of my favorite flowers.  Besides looking divine while growing in murky and muddy waters, they have a composite petal coloring that is not easy to capture.  The petals can go from bright pink corners to white where light hits it. I thought it would be fun to capture these varied petal shapes and colors. I ordered these lotuses from india and they arrived as buds. It was fun opening the petals.
Knowing how quickly they wilt, I set up the entire composition before pulling the flowers out of the fridge.  I decided to keep the background very dark and not play with it as i have been doing in my recent paintings.  Did a study and then painted the larger18 x 24 later.  After I did this study , while travelling, I found yellow lliles growing in a lakeside pond in pennsylvania.  Only problem was it is impossible to pick these flowers unless you are willing to get neck deep into murky waters.