Title and Medium
Still Life with Green Bottle and Nectarine, 300 x 420 mm, acrylics on canvas paper.
Artist's Statement
A still life has been on my to do list for a while now, so this was a project I definitely wanted to do. I hadn't painted a still life for several years and this was more or less the first one I set up myself.
I chose a green bottle and a nectarine, because this was what I had available. The objects are standing on a light table by a blue wall. I left some space between them so that the they would fill up the whole canvas and not be squeezed into the middle.
What I'd Do Differently
- I am not sure if I have used the correct colours for the shadows, this is something I am having difficulties with.
- I don't know if I really like the placement of the shadow of the bottle. The nectarine could have been a bit further to the right, so that there would have been enough space on the canvas for the shadow of the bottle.
- I like the fact that the nectarine actually looks round.
Marion Boddy-Evans, Painting Guide, says:
It's always great when a project prompts someone into doing something! I agree about the position of the bottle's shadow. My inclination would be to have it go off the edge more, up the neck of the bottle too. So it feels more deliberate, rather than accidentally going off the edge. (Hold up your hand to crop off a bit of the painting, and see how you feel about this.) Maybe have had a bit more space above the bottle too, it feels a little squashed in to me.
Shadow colors... if you're undecided, mix up some of the main color in an object with its complementary color, without any white. Spread it thinly initially, adding layers to build up darker tones. The shadow on the nectarine is gorgeous: soft edges, varied color and tone. The shadow on the bottle is, by comparison, stiff and flat. I would glaze a little of the bottle green over this for starters, to add a bit of depth to the shadow.
