Tentative thinking ...

I set up my easel last night to paint for a few hours, as it was too hot to sleep anyway. The subject was an orchid hybrid in close-up. The medium: watercolor. The drawing went by quickly and without problems, although I didn't really expect any. The painting itself, however, was/is a miserable failure. I've been thinking about it all night. I believe there are a few items of interest with a project like this:

• A mottled black background is very difficult in a water media. I should have probably altered that to a light wash.
• The complexity of the composition wasn't a problem or else I would have gotten tangled in that as I drew it. 
• I should have stretched the paper the day before, rather than a couple of hours ahead of time. Even with the intense heat yesterday, I don't believe there was enough time for the cold press to dry correctly.
• I went about it as a technical botanical illustration, although in my head I was thinking of it as a quick painting. If I was working in temperas or acrylics ... even pencil ... there would not have been a problem. But I missed out on all of the painterly qualities in the image and should have worked faster rather than slower.

The painting isn't lost ... yet. I'll work on it again tonight. Since I muddied the paper already, I may need to top the image with pastels or colored pencil. I will set a timer for 2 hours and not allow myself to work past that.