Extensive General Overview & Notes
Fruit & Vegetables -Lockdown Week 3
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Arrange the still life so that in your imagination you can pass between the objects to the back of the picture. This approach will relax the mind of the viewer.
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Start in the top of the picture which is at the top of the objects. Work from the furthest objects to the closest. Remember to overlap the different shapes and sizes to create an interesting composition and perspective.
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As the objects placed overlapping move towards the viewer try not to place them directly in front of each other. Move the objects slightly to the left or right to have it still overlapping, but not creating visual confusion. Use your artistic license to iron out these issues with your arrangement.
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Fruit and vegetables are quite often symmetrical. Be aware of this uniformity in relation to shape and balance, however colour may vary - i.e in an apple. This theme is organic, porous and alive in it's appearance.
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Draw in your shapes very softly at first and once you are happy with your shapes you can increase the shading, contrast and tonal values to gradually build up the picture.
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Various fruits and vegetables are naturally shiny with multiple colour changes. Others are very textured and sometimes dull in appearance. It is important to try and capture the individual nature of the various items you have selected. Some are extremely bright in colour and tone. Others are also rich on the darker end of the colour and tonal range.
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Remember to look at the theme more than your picture. Glancing at it frequently which will connect you to both in a more beneficial way. I.e If a banana has little black spots on it, include them. These are the little things that make fruit and vegetables what they are.
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Find a big range of tones and colours in your fruit and vegetables. The more you have the better and more they will appear.
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Look at the direction of your light source. If the fruit is gently backlit from the side, casting a shadow forward in the front/left/right of the arrangement, that will create interest in the shadows. The shadows take on the same shape as the objects and the further away they are cast the softer they become.
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Earth your shadows from the table onto the fruit so the same shadow colours or tones merge in the lower fruit colours and tones. For example purples or violet blues.
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Keep the top of the fruit and vegetables light in tones so no dark outlines in the tops of each individual item unless you see otherwise.