Reflecting on Oil Painting: Still Life

One of the foremost principles of oil painting thus far has been composition. Looking back at my skill inventory still life from the first week of school, I can definitely see improvement in my understanding of still life composition. However, I must give myself credit: I actually think, apart from it being quite central, my original composition was also relatively strong. I almost wish I had used the shiny ribbon again in my current piece, as it would have added a dynamic element that I feel my painting is missing. That being said, I can definitively say I have greatly improved in my understanding of composition, color, etc. after working on my painting.

My biggest struggles with my painting have probably been the reflections (and proportions) of the tall object and teapot, as well as the glazing process as a whole. I think I need to spend just one more session refining the reflections of the tall object and cleaning up the edges. The teapot and the box below could also use some extra details. The first day of glazing was certainly nerve-wracking, as I lost many of the highlights that had given the underpainting its realism, and the colors just felt very muddled. After a few more days, I had to turn to direct painting, which definitely helped. I'm not sure whether I would want to use the same process of doing a complete underpainting and then glazing again. I think I would rather do a wash of color below and then do layers of careful direct painting above it. I do think that of the three types of painting I've tried (watercolor, acrylic, and oil), oil has been my favorite. I like the various textures you can get, from very thin, watercolor-like glazes to thick, acrylic-like strokes depending on the amount of medium used. I would love to work on another painting, maybe over the summer, with a figure or other subject that I'm more passionate about.

My favorite part of my painting was working with the reflections and hues on the teapot. After much trial and error during the initial glazing stages, the hue of the blue looked very off. However, I gambled and started directly adding shades of purple, and, while it may not have shown up particularly well in the photograph, this added another dimension to the pot that it really needed. I also just love the way the tomato reflected on the teapot and on the tall mirrored object behind it.

Overall, I enjoyed oil painting more than I expected, and I look forward to working with it again.