Description
“Hedgehog Cactus” vibrant cactus flower oil painting on canvas
- 14x11in.
- Oil on Canvas, 2021
- Unframed
Echinocereus is a genus that is much loved by cactus growers world-wide and here are several characteristics that collectively account for their popularity. The stems of this genus are more often than not under a foot in height and perhaps 2 or 3 inches in diameter. Some are slightly bigger, some smaller. In the wild, some species may form large mounds of many hundreds of stems, but this takes many years and these same species are still quite manageable in cultivation. There is a wide variety of spination that includes some of the most fierce and dramatic spines covering the plant stem so that it is not even visible. Most have moderately sized spines evenly distributed, some have very colorful spines even in alternating patterns. Some have pectinate (comb-like) spines and some are nearly spineless. The spines are arranged on ribs.
They range in color from electric-pink to deep scarlet to translucent browns and greens and even bright yellow. Many species feature two-toned flowers with one color toward the center and another color on the outer parts of the flower. The flowers can be 3 inches or more in diameter and feature spiny floral tubes. Close examination reveals that the flowers actually break through the epidermis of the stem as do any new offsetting stems.
In the wild, Echinocereus range from as far north as South Dakota, USA, and south through most of Mexico. They inhabit a wide range of habitats growing under Ponderosa forests to coastal plains; from low elevation deserts to mountainsides of 8,000 feet or more. There can be a tremendous amount of variation within species and this can make identification especially tricky in some instances.
Although my focus is on the cactus flowers in this series, what struck me as a necessary depiction in this modern impression was the spines, hence the description “hedgehog,” adding to the cute but prickly plant as they point in all directions.
About the Artist:
As a young man I was always outside observing my surroundings. I graduated from Elsenburg College Stellenbosch in South Africa with degrees in Agriculture, Horticulture, and Oenology. I first specialized in growing roses and fruit trees in the Eastern Cape region where I taught local farm workers to play rugby and established a rugby league while they taught me how to speak their native tongue, Xhosa.
I traveled the world extensively and then settled in Tucson, Arizona where I live with my wife Sarah and two sons James and Gordon. Sarah, Yale educated in art history, finally put the palette knife in my hand. I am self-taught and express what comes naturally to me. My paintings are full of movement, deep and rich. I let the moment, mood, and my education of the subject, inspire my art.
