What a fun commission piece this was to paint! This painting took several weeks to do as it consists of many, many layers of paint and 3 dimensional props. The customer loves sunflowers and wanted something with blue to match her decor. After planning the piece, I decided to keep it simple but do something that would make the simplicity stand out. Using sand and acrylic paint as the base, it has that grainy feel in the background. On top of that layer, I began the field of sunflowers with oil. In the foreground are the 3 sunflowers rising high above the crowd, symbolic of the family I was doing the painting for - the husband, the wife, and the son. Using dimensional paint , caulk, and styrofoam, I created the leaves, stems, and petals of the flowers mixing the base color in with it. I then painted more oils over the base color to add depth and highlight. The finished painting was then covered with several coats of protective sealant.