‘Foundations of Still-Life Painting’ – Colour Application, Textural Effects and Development of Holistic Composition. Analysis of Selected Still-Life Paintings by Second Year Students at Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya
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Date
2023
Authors
Wango, Kamau
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
East African Nature and Science Organization
Abstract
Still-life painting as a formative painting unit is important in enabling students to
interact with elements of art in the arrangement of specific static objects that form
a precise composition. This arrangement of objects in composition is essential in
helping students to comprehend the concept of composition in creative work. Since
they are dealing with arranged, static objects as opposed to flowing figures and
other fluid or gestural forms that suggest movement as would be the case in regular
painted pictorial compositions, a still-life composition provides an opportunity to
apply the principles of art in a concise way. This in turn underscores the
compositional essence of each element as it relates to any principle, the
interrelation of which formulates the composition itself. It is envisaged that the
execution of a good still-live composition shall assist students to apply the same
compositional tenets in regular paintings. For instance, students are henceforth
aware of the application of comparative proportions, the use of textural effects,
illumination, shadows, balance, and placement of objects on the picture plane, as
well as colour contrasts, harmony, and tones. This paper examines how students
engage with still-life painting, arrangement of objects and the wider notion of
composition. Since this unit provides the first opportunity for this engagement, the
paper specifically seeks to determine the extent to which students internalize and
subsequently apply, through visual depiction, the interrelationships between
objects, their proportions, the use of perspective to create depth, textural effects,
application of colours and colour tones, shadows, the effect of light and its sources,
drapery, compositional base as well as the usefulness of backgrounds. In order to
attract their interest, sustain their attention and enhance their creativity, the
students were allowed to choose, assemble, and arrange their own objects in
creating their still-life compositions. Unlike the traditional approach where
students draw or paint a similar set of objects arranged before them, this alternative
approach of painting objects of their choice eliminated the possibility of
unnecessary comparison of work at this stage and instead provided the students
with the opportunity to paint objects that actually fascinated them and spurred their imagination. Students’ attention was drawn to the visual difference between a
regular, painted pictorial composition and a still-life composition. A regular
pictorial composition comprises of undulating features that show movement or is
expressive of a phenomenon be it the study of nature and the environment or an
aspect of personal expression or social commentary. A still-life composition is
static and shows only interrelationships between objects. Students were free to use
watercolours, oils or acrylics and their respective materials and tools. The
researcher then selected paintings that best demonstrated this internalization and
suggested indicators of artistic skill at this formative level.
Description
Article
Keywords
Still-Life Painting, Colours, Composition, Textures, Perspective, Proportions, Background
Citation
Wango, K. (2023). ‘Foundations of Still-Life Painting’ – Colour Application, Textural Effects and Development of Holistic Composition. Analysis of Selected Still-Life Paintings by Second Year Students at Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya. East African Journal of Arts and Social Sciences, 6(1), 237-269. https://doi.org/10.37284/eajass.6.1.1176