Still Life Studies

During the last two classes "A New Twist to Still-Life" I have produced a few studies. The course is liberating as one does not have to be reproducing every detail of a set up but instead use it as a departure point. The hardest part is to make a judgement when to stop and leave the painting alone. It is so easy to overwork it.

I also feel that although I know when I am not happy with a piece, it is a big struggle to figure out what exactly is not working. So then it gets really frustrating trying to resolve a problem when you can't quite put your finger on it. There are so many answers but finding your own is the key. My only consolation that all artists go through this with most of their works. They rarely just happen.

Here are my studies where I do like some parts but kind of unsure about how it all works together. There are all 16' x 20' and I didn't want to spend too much time on them.




This one started as a pure abstraction as I was trying out my new oil pastels and then the tulip worked its way out.



And here, a pear is the only thing that is left from an original still life. I started it with a bowl (only its opening remaining in the center), a tea pot (you can just about see where a handle was on the left), a vase on the right side and tomatoes (left bottom) just blurred into random shapes.