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presents Tips to Enhance Your Still Life Art 18 CREATING A POWERFUL STILL LIFE PAINTING:

Creating a Powerful Still Life Painting

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presents

Tips to Enhance Your Still Life Art

18

Creating a Powerful Still life Painting:

Page 2: Creating a Powerful Still Life Painting

ARTIST DAILY STEP-BY-STEP: PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING www.artistdaily.com 2

18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

Joe Gyurcsak, a veteran painter andart teacher, recently gave a demon-stration at a regional arts guild in

which he showed how using a limitedpalette can help unify the look of a stilllife painting. Gyurcsak, the resident artistat Utrecht Art Supplies, took an event atthe Burlington County Art Guild as anopportunity to explore ideas behind apiece he admired—N.C. Wyeth’s TheDusty Bottle, a 1924 oil painting that’s inthe collection of the Brandywine RiverMuseum, in Chadds Ford, Pennsylvania.Wyeth’s somewhat mysterious piece letsa huge green glass bottle largely disap-pear into the darkness of the back-ground. Gyurcsak sought to recreate thelow values of Wyeth’s painting—and alsoWyeth’s masterful way of wringing themost out of a simple composition. “Anyold object can be interesting dependingon how it is lit,” Gyurcsak says. “Wyethreally shows how few objects you need tomake a painting interesting. He didn’t dotoo many still lifes, but the ones he did

Painting Techniques inStill Life Oil Painting

by Bob Bahr

Fruits of Life2005, oil on linen, 14 x 19.

This premium has been published by Interweave Press, 201 E. FourthSt., Loveland, CO 80537-5655; (970) 669-7672. Copyright © 2009 byInterweave Press, a division of Aspire Media, all rights reserved. Thecontents of this publication may not be reproduced either in whole or inpart without consent of the copyright owner.

Page 3: Creating a Powerful Still Life Painting

ARTIST DAILY STEP-BY-STEP: PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING www.artistdaily.com 3

were gems. I’ve wanted to do a paintingsimilar to Wyeth’s for a long time, andafter 10 years of looking, I finally found abottle like the one he painted—in an oldantique shop in Easton, Maryland.”

Gyurcsak decided to set up the stilllife arrangement on the floor about eightfeet from his easel and to shine a warmlight on the objects—the aforemen-tioned glass bottle, a brownware jug, anda white plate with an orange on it—onthe left side at floor level. The objects saton a piece of black velvet that continuedup behind them, creating a backgroundthat effectively absorbed almost all light.A second lamp, a balanced light fittedwith a warm bulb and a cool bulb, shoneon the artist’s easel and trickled a weaksecondary light on the objects’ right side.Gyurcsak had previously tested manyoptions to determine the placement thatmost effectively showed off the objectsand the light effects. (The rest of thelights in the room were turned out.) Heaffixed a homemade cropping tool—aviewfinder—to the articulated arm of amodified lamp so that the artist’s view ofthe still life setup would remain consis-tent from his place at the easel. “I findthat fixing the viewfinder to a stationaryobject is very valuable,” explains

Gyurcsak. “It keeps you from changingthe cropping distance. Students some-times don’t realize that they are holdingthe viewfinder at a slightly different dis-tance each time they hold it with theirhands, and reducing the visual area ofthe composition can give you a simpli-fied look, which is especially importantwhen painting a quick two-hour demosuch as this one,” he pointed out.

The artist had previously toned a30"-x-30" Utrecht cotton duck canvas byrubbing burnt sienna oil paint andalkyd medium on the surface with a ragand letting it dry thoroughly over a fewweeks. As other artists have also point-ed out, a tone on the canvas eliminatesthe bright light value of a gessoed sur-face (which “closes” the pupil of eye),lessens the absorbency of the surfaceand allows smoother paint application,

and enables an artist to work from themiddle of the value range. At the start ofthe demonstration, Gyurcsak sketchedthe outlines of the objects with burntsienna mixed with alkyd glazing medi-um and a little turpentine using a size 8filbert bristle brush. “Delicate sketchingwas not needed because the scene has adark background—the drawing could becruder,” Gyurcsak comments. “This step

18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

ABOVE

Tea Kettle2007, oil on linen, 20 x22. All artwork this articlecollection the artist unlessotherwise indicated.

BELOW

The Remains2007, oil, 24 x 24.

Page 4: Creating a Powerful Still Life Painting

18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

is all about determining how the subjectis going to fill up or be contained on thecanvas. You have to look at the composi-tion carefully and see how the shapeswill fill the space first.”

He then turned his attention to hispalette. Gyurcsak made a point ofexplaining the advantages of using a

limited palette similar to the onesuggested by many of Anders Zorn’spaintings, including yellow ochre,cadmium red light or vermillion,cobalt blue, ivory black, and white.This color selection is sometimesslightly broadened on Gyurcsak’spalette by the inclusion of cadmium

Gyurcsak’s MaterialsPalette� cadmium yellow medium� cadium red light� yellow ochre� burnt sienna� ultramarine blue� ivory black� titanium white

Surface� 30"-x-30" Utrecht cotton duckcanvas

Brushes� Utrecht Series 219 filbert soft bris-tle brushes in sizes 4 through 12

� Utrecht Series 219 flat soft bristlebrushes in sizes 8 through 12

� fan brush

Mediums� turpentine� Utrecht alkyd glazing medium

ARTIST DAILY STEP-BY-STEP: PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING www.artistdaily.com 4

“Don’t worry so much about making the perfectbrushstroke. If the value, intensity, and temper-ature of the mixture are right, then it will work.Put it down fluidly, and don’t worry about theaccuracy of the stroke.”

Bottles2008, oil on panel, 24 x 24.

Page 5: Creating a Powerful Still Life Painting

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18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

ABOVE

On the Edge2009, oil on linen,24 x 24.

BELOW

Pineapple Still Life2004, oil on panel,18 x 12. Private collection.

LEFT

Pears2006, oil on linen,26 x 26.

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ARTIST DAILY STEP-BY-STEP: PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING www.artistdaily.com 6

18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

yellow medium, burnt sienna, andultramarine blue (replacing cobalt blue).The objective is to reduce color optionsand create color mixtures within thoseoptions that automatically create a har-monious light in which to envelope thestill life. Alkyd glazing medium mixedwith the paints allowed Gyurcsak towork a little more quickly, as it partiallyset up almost immediately. The teacheralways pays careful attention to theorganization of his mixing palette andstrongly advises students to do like-wise, citing past masters who avowedthat the appearance of an artist’s palettespeaks eloquently of the person’sprocess. “An out-of-control paletteequals an out-of-control painting,”Gyurcsak asserts. “Pay attention to howyou manage your palette.” Another keypoint he made was the importance ofholding a color mixture on the paletteknife up to the area of the subject onewishes to paint, in the same light con-ditions as the subject. “Keep your easelclose to your subject so you can com-pare them,” he says. “Don’t worry somuch about making the perfect brush-stroke. If the value, intensity, and tem-perature of the mixture are right, thenit will work. Put it down fluidly, anddon’t worry about the accuracy of thestroke. And don’t pet the paint on thecanvas. Load the brush, lay it down,and don’t go over it too many times.”

Gyurcsak blocked in the big shapeswith local color using size 8, 10, and 12flat brushes, placing the strokes downas if building a mosaic, leaving somecanvas showing. He concentrated onvalue, but nevertheless pointed out thatthe dark of the background was cool

(made with ivory black and ultramarineblue), whereas the dark of the glass bot-tle was a dark green. The dark back-ground was added next, roughly defin-ing the shapes of the objects. (Later inthe process, he would blend the edgesof these areas with a fan brush so the

edges were lost and the bottle appearedto fade into the darkness.) Gyurcsakthen moved on to the other objects inthe still life, blocking them in with mid-dle-range local color. “I’m doing this soI can still go up and down in valuerange later on these objects,” he

RIGHT

Still LifeDemonstration2008, oil, 24 x 24.

BELOW RIGHT

Three Peaches2008, oil on panel,8 x 16.

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ARTIST DAILY STEP-BY-STEP: PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING www.artistdaily.com 7

18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

ly, which is important in a fast paintingsuch as this alla prima demonstration.”Gyurcsak utilized several tools in theartist’s toolbox to break the big shapesinto smaller pieces, including details,various values, diverse brushstrokes,and contrasting color temperatures.The subject of his palette came upagain. “Ask yourself questions abouteach color you mix,” he says. “Is thearea light or dark, rich or dull, warm orcool?” The atmosphere suggested bythe still life scene played a large role inits appearance, and Gyurcsak pointedout that capturing this ambience wouldbe easier due to his limited palette. Thewhite plate, which was more dimly litand thus much darker than the refer-ence photo indicates, was reflectingmany of the colors of its surroundingobjects. The artist used the rather neu-tral green-grays that were naturally pro-duced on his palette to paint the localcolor of the plate. “Don’t be literalwhen you paint white objects,”Gyurcsak says. “Use some of the nicegrays that show up on your mixingpalette. It helps create a unified atmos-phere.” He also had some advice onpainting glass—often an intimidatingsubject for beginners. “Just find thelight source, then determine the tem-perature and shape of the highlight,”says the artist. “Don’t get caught up intight descriptions of objects—paint thehighlight, and let the abstract nature ofglass and reflective objects do the rest. Ialways remember what GiorgioMorandi said, that there is nothingmore abstract than realism. That is sotrue. Pay attention to how one shape isinteracting with other shapes. How dothey fit together? Remove yourself fromthe everyday observation of things.”

Finally, Gyurcsak added the last high-lights and blended the edges of the darksides of objects with a fan brush, merg-ing the color of the background with thecolors of the objects in some places—

explains. The artist was careful to notpaint over the toned canvas in the areaswhere highlights occur on the jug,orange, and plate, pointing out that thecolor of the toned canvas was brighterthan the adjacent areas but not as lightas the lightest lights he would later add.

Switching to smaller brushes,Gyurcsak began to break down the big-ger shapes into littler ones, and hequickly progressed to putting down acouple of highlights to serve as land-marks. “These few highlights help getthe value range established,” he says.“It will also help establish the form,turn the form. And it will do this quick-

“Ask yourself questionsabout each color youmix. Is the area light ordark, rich or dull, warmor cool?”

BELOW

Orchard2008, oil on panel,12 x 16. Private collection.

BOTTOM

Dynasty2008, oil on linen,18 x 24.

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18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

About the ArtistJoe Gyurcsak is a painter andteacher based in Mercerville, NewJersey. He is the resident artist forUtrecht Art Supplies, providing thatart-materials company with technicalinformation from the vantage point ofa working artist and conducting lec-tures and painting workshopsthroughout the United States on thecompany’s behalf. Gyurcsak’s art hasbeen juried into numerous exhibi-tions, and his work has been fea-tured in group and solo shows indozens of galleries and museums.The artist earned a B.F.A. from theSchool of Visual Arts, in New YorkCity, and attended Parsons the NewSchool for Design, also in New YorkCity, and the Johnson Atelier andTechnical Institute of Sculpture, inMercerville. He is represented byFrederick Galleries, in Spring Lake,New Jersey; Bucks Gallery of FineArt, in Newtown, Pennsylvania; andRadclyffe Gallery, in New Hope,Pennsylvania. For more information,visit www.josephgyurcsak.com.

LEFT

Hudson en PleinAir2008, oil on panel,14 x 19. Privatecollection.

BELOW

Vegetable StillLife2006, oil, 16 x 24.

even overlapping them at times. “Theeye wants to fill in what is not there,” heexplains. The artist discussed edges,advising students to be spare in usinghard ones, utilizing soft edges muchmore often. “Hard edges attract youreye, so be careful where you placethem.”Wyeth had scratched “three hrs”into the corner of the canvas of TheDusty Bottle. Gyurcsak did nothing simi-

lar, although he executed his still life intwo. “Just trying to pull off somethingthat looks like something,” he modestlysaid. His students seemed to think theartist had accomplished much morethan merely “something.” �

Bob Bahr is a freelance editor and writerbased in New York City.

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18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

R

3 4

5

1 2

Demonstration: Still Life Demo

Step 2The painter had previously toned his canvasby applying burnt sienna oil paint and alkydglazing medium to the canvas with a rag andallowing it to dry over a few weeks. Now hecould sketch the outlines of the compositionwith a mixture of burnt sienna, alkyd glazingmedium, and turpentine. “This is just to seehow the shapes will fit into the space,” saysGyurcsak.

Step 3Gyurcsak next began blocking in the bigshapes with an eye toward value.

Step 4The background, which the artistconstructed by placing the still life setup onblack velvet that continued up behind thearrangement, was darker and cooler thanthe very dark green of the large glass bottle.Gyurcsak mixed this color with ivory blackand ultramarine blue and scrubbed in thebackground around the objects.

Step 5Next, he added the local color of theobjects, taking care to preserve the areas ofthe canvas where he wanted highlights toshow. “Don’t feel the need to close everybrushstroke and cover every inch of thecanvas,” says Gyurcsak. “Leave some of thetone of the canvas.”

ReferenceThe still life setup Gyurcsak arranged inapproximation of N.C. Wyeth’s compositionfor the painting The Dusty Bottle. The actualscene Gyurcsak painted from was muchdarker than this photo; he furthermanipulated the lighting so that a faint lightat ground level hit the objects from the left,and a bit of the light from the artist ’s easellamp spilled onto the objects from the right.

Step 1Gyurcsak studied the scene through ahomemade viewfinder that he attached to anarticulated arm and alligator clip hefashioned from a lamp. By making theviewfinder stationary, the artist couldensure that his view of the compositionwould remain constant throughout thepainting session.

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18 INSTRUCTIONS FOR PAINTING WITH OIL COLORS

PAINTING TECHNIQUES IN STILL LIFE OIL PAINTING

Demonstration: Still Life DemoStep 6The objects were just roughly blockedin, but Gyurcsak was alreadyaddressing highlights. “It helps to getthe full value range established toavoid getting stuck in middle range,”he asserts. “Put a highlight down earlyon—it will also help establish the form,turn the form. And it will do thisquickly, which is important in a fastpainting such as this alla primademonstration.” Gyurcsak added thathe doesn’t use up all his lightest lightsso he can adjust the value range at theend of the painting process.

Step 7The next step was to break the bigshapes down into smaller ones,adding just enough detail to make thescene convincing. “When you get tothe smaller areas, load the brush withpaint,” advises Gyurcsak. “Lay itdown, and don’t go over it too manytimes. The value, intensity, and colortemperature need to be right, butdon’t worry too much about theaccuracy of the stroke.”

Step 8Finally, the artist adjusted the colorsin the white plate. “If you work from alimited palette, the nice grays that willnaturally show up on your palette willwork well for white objects that arepicking up the colors in the scene,”Gyurcsak says. “And reflections in thewhite will have values much darkerthan the local color of the objects. Forexample, the reflection of the orange inthe plate is much darker.”

6

7

8

THE COMPLETED DEMONSTRATION:

Still Life Demo2009, oil, 30 x 30.Collection the artist.

Page 11: Creating a Powerful Still Life Painting

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