A Simple Still Life

"Apple with Leaves"

8x10" oil on canvas board

painted by Cindy Mott McGarry

"Art is a harmony parallel with nature."

- Paul Cezanne

A recent class with Jenny Berry at Arts Alliance of Lemon Bay in Englewood, Florida, on the art of painting a still life was truly fascinating. A great teacher really enjoys teaching, listening, answering questions and sharing ideas about art and painting. Going over painting basics can always improve the simplicity of your unique process. These are a few reminders and important tips to remember while making a painting.

Go for a strong, bold design! Painting large shapes is difficult because we tend to become mesmerized by details. Only looking for large shapes and the overall value of each shape really helps with the beginning design. It also can help keep you true to and not stray from the original inspiring image. Choosing a basic composition from the very start is very important to the success of the whole work of art. If you stick with a basic design the imaginative, loose work added during the later stages can help bring the work together.

A big key to generating an attractive painting is making objects look round. Painting dark, medium and light values of color give any object weight and depth. This produces dimension which is very appealing to the viewer.

Keeping your paint thick and creamy helps create an engaging work. It builds alluring textures and allows for an easier painterly edge-blending experience. It's much more fun to work with loose, thick paint. 

Shadows and the angle of light are necessary to ground objects. They also help with rounding each significant shape in the piece. If this is not accomplished, then objects can look like they are floating in mid air.

Pressure put on the brush is of the utmost importance. When paint is thick and wet there are so many different techniques you can use to create many different effects. Pressure can make all the difference in what you are trying to create as an end result. It also helps keep the colors clean.

Paint away ....

Thank you for reading my blog!
Love to paint and share!

#art #oilpainting #brushwork #colormixing #design #composition #loosebrushwork

www.cindymottmcgarry.com

@cindymottmcgarry

www.facebook.com/cindymcgarryart