Purple Zinnia – Jacki Kellum Watercolor Painting
June 13, 2025

The summer of 2025 is my summer of painting zinnias. I love zinnias, and they are relatively easy to draw. I decided painting zinnias would be the least painful way for me to teach myself to paint again. Therefore, I am trying to paint zinnias at least 4 days a week–all summer long.

Zinnias Growing in Jacki Kellum Garden

To help me with my zinnia paintings, I am growing several beds of zinnias.

Correcting the Mistake of Not Painting

One of my most destructive habits is that of stopping painting when other of life’s emergencies or set of changes force me into an extended period of not painting. The longer I am away from making art, the longer it takes me to get back into my groove, and my groove is an essential part of my painting style.

My Painting Style is a Mix of Drawing and Painting

Red Zinnia – Jacki Kellum Watercolor Painting
June 21, 2025

Because my painting style is a mix of drawing and painting, I strive for my painting stages to be loose and free. During the final stages of my paintings, I add a few spontaneous calligraphic marks. During that final stage, I try to capture the mood or the energy of the painting. If the initial painting is too tight, I don’t sense any movement. The subject seems dead to me.

Draw Contour Drawings to Feel Your Subject’s Movement or Energy

Zinnia Contour Drawing
June `13, 2025

One of my friends on Facebook said the following about the above zinnia drawing: “There’s so much movement here, but it looks like the flower is dancing.”

My Contour Drawings are done without lifting my pen. I draw in long, uninterrupted lines. As I draw, I sense that I am touching what I am drawing. I dig until I feel the subject–until I can begin to capture the spirit of the subject.

Zinnia
Jacki Kellum Contour Drawing
June 20, 2025

Contour Drawing is a type of meditation that strips away all the illusions of what I think are there and allows me to see what is actually there. I start every painting session with the act of contour drawing.