Three Still Life Paintings

Yet again I've got behind with the updates to the site, so today I've got three new paintings to post, a plum, an apple and a tomato. Something changed through these three paintings, something that I think has made a big difference to how well I'm seeing and how well I'm getting what I see down on the canvas.

It's all about the light.

Plum
This plum was painted over a week ago now, and it was a struggle. Usually when I struggle with a painting I've learned something new and valuable when I come out the other side, that's true with this painting. I had a hell of a job understanding why I was finding it so difficult to match the colours. It was all down to a really small, really stupid mistake I made when I set up the easel, and one I won't make again in a hurry.

Apple
Next came the apple, painted last Saturday on the 25th. I was pretty nervous about starting this painting. I was pretty sure I knew what I'd got wrong with the set up of the plum, and this apple was going to prove me right or wrong. Thankfully it proved me right. Looking at these two thumbnail images together I can see a much more convincing feeling of light in the apple painting compared to the plum. I'm not giving away what I changed though, if you want to know what it was you'll just have to read the write ups of the paintings.

Tomato
The tomato was painted on Sunday the 26th, and confirmed what I changed with the apple painting. It's all about the light.

I think this painting also has a much more convincing feeling of light in it than the plum does, and the dark background helps it more than the mid tone one I used for the apple.

These paintings are numbers two, three and four respectively of my ten single objects series I decided to do after my reassessment at the beginning of February. I think they're going ok, I can see some progress.

Although the still lifes for this series were supposed to be simple and quick, I've only hit one out of two of those. They are simple set ups, but quick they're not. I'm spending longer on them now, five to six hours each, and it's only the failing light that stops me. But as I get closer to painting what I see, and learn to see better, I'm enjoying the painting more. It's true I'm a long way off being satisfied with these paintings, in fact in a way I hope I never am, but that doesn't mean I don't get a lot of pleasure out of painting them and also just looking at them when they're done. I've never felt so fired up about painting, it's all I want to do now.

Still, I have to be realistic, have to pay the mortgage and bills, have to keep my business as together as I can, at least until I can start making a living from painting again, and who knows how long that'll take. I know I will get there eventually though. Unswerving inner purpose brings good fortune in the end. Or not. Either way I'm just happy to be painting and drawing, and to be seeing some progression.

There's still some drawings from the past week I haven't had time to photograph and post yet, some more cafe sketches and some Bargue drawings, but they'll have to wait till the weekend, by which time I'll have some more to post too. I don't want to get behind with the updates, I want everything I do to go up here, but it looks like I'm going to have to shift up a gear if I'm going to keep up.

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