"French Roast" Acrylic on watercolor paper.  Painted by Bernice B. Duvall of CHevy Chase, Maryland.  Registered BOS/SW/PWS.

From 10/22/1998 Gazette Article:

For Bernice B. Duvall of Chevy Chase, everything good in her life -- with the exception of her husband and two sons -- has come from art.

The watercolorist and exhibit coordinator [] has wanted to be an artist her whole life.

"I have always been drawn to and been involved with art," said Duvall, 50, who has lived in Chevy Chase since 1970. "I've always enjoyed drawing, color relationships and the actual process of painting."

Duvall, who has won numerous awards for her work during the past 20 years and has exhibited in the District, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia, uses a technique in her paintings that combines drawing and wax tracing with watercolor painting.

She said her style evolved from her knowledge of watercolor. The wax outline, which is melted away with an iron after completing a painting, provides a white outlining in painting.

Many of her paintings are still-life, floral or interiors. She said she is drawn to strong color and likes to maximize pigments.

Duvall calls herself a "conceptual artist," in contrast to what she calls a "literal artist," because she often comes up with an idea for a painting and then gathers photographs and objects to use as models.

She said she frequents gardens and floral warehouses like Brookside Gardens and Kensington Orchids to photograph flowers for her paintings.