Still Life with Hokkaido Pumpkin, Tomato, and Bell Pepper

[Hermes2020]

This isn't really intended to be a "work of art"; it is a self-imposed painting exercise. I decided to force myself completely out of my comfort zone and paint a still life! One of the goals was to try and mix believable colours. Another aim was to do something bright and sunny, as opposed to my usual dark and sombre paintings. I think that the process, which I must admit taxed my patience a bit, was valuable in the end, but not something I would want to go through again soon. I now have even more respect for all the very talented artists on Creative Spark who manage to produce really excellent still life paintings. I never knew what a difficult genre it is. I am also working on a painting exercise of red and yellow canna lilies. I will have to push myself to finish that one before going back to my wicked dark, non-representational ways that suit me much better.

The painting is on 610 x 760 mm primed hardboard and is painted mainly with Winsor & Newton Griffin alkyd paints.

Some details:

 

[Enyaw]

exercises are good. Looks good for a first.

 

[Hermes2020]

exercises are good. Looks good for a first.

Thank you.

 

[Enyaw]

Looks good for a first.

I take that back. It looks exceptionally good for a first.

 

[Hermes2020]

I take that back. It looks exceptionally good for a first.

Your cheque is in the mail.

 

[laika]

This isn't really intended to be a "work of art"; it is a self-imposed painting exercise.

You have transcended your painting exercise, and moved on through to what is, imho, most certainly a work of art! I like the graduated contrast from the deep green, to the orange-y, to the rich red. Pow! Very nice.
Do you like the alkyd paints?

 

[Hermes2020]

You have transcended your painting exercise, and moved on through to what is, imho, most certainly a work of art! I like the graduated contrast from the deep green, to the orange-y, to the rich red. Pow! Very nice.
Do you like the alkyd paints?

Thank you, laika. I see now that the reds and oranges are very slightly too intense in the photo. I will try to adjust the balance to make it look more like the painting.
Yes, alkyds suit my workflow very well. I do a lot of transparent glazes over underpainted areas, so the fast drying times of alkyds are a great benefit. I can usually carry on the next day, whereas oils would take up to a week or even longer to dry enough for glazing. My first choice is always alkyds, except when the pigments I want are only available in traditional oil medium.

 

[Queen Bee]

Very successful exercise. Excellent painting.

 

[Hermes2020]

I have made some adjustments to the photo to improve the colour balance. The oranges in the pumpkin were too bright. I think the colours in this photo are balanced better and it looks more like the painting.

 

[Donna T]

Oh my goodness this is stunning! I didn't really know how alkyds were different from oils but being able to do transparent glazes over underpainted areas without having to wait weeks for drying sounds like a great option to have. Thanks for the close-ups. It's nice to see the brush strokes and the textural areas in the background.

 

[Hermes2020]

Oh my goodness this is stunning! I didn't really know how alkyds were different from oils but being able to do transparent glazes over underpainted areas without having to wait weeks for drying sounds like a great option to have. Thanks for the close-ups. It's nice to see the brush strokes and the textural areas in the background.

Thank you for your kind words. And yes, alkyds are wonderful.

 

[Artyczar]

I think you did an absolutely EXCELLENT job. This has great color and tonal qualities. It really turned out beautifully. Great job! You should paint more "exercises."

 

[Hermes2020]

I think you did an absolutely EXCELLENT job. This has great color and tonal qualities. It really turned out beautifully. Great job! You should paint more "exercises."

Thank you so much. I think I will limit these ventures, because I must be honest and say it felt weird to be painting this. I am about to finish the flower exercise; I think that will be quite enough for now.

 

[Artyczar]

Gotta go with where the muse takes you I guess.

 

[16ga]

Fantastic job.

 

[Hermes2020]

Thank you 16ga.

 

[snoball]

You may not have intended it for a still life but it works very well. The composition, the colors used and excellent detail. I love it.