This is the final blog, rather long, following my investigation into the suggested artists from Formative feedback from Part One. The suggested artists show a wide variety of different styles and techniques. I have selected two or three paintings from each of them and have commented on the paintings and why I was drawn to them.

1. Patrick Caulfield

In these paintings the subjects have been reduced to a simple shape. The emphasis has moved to the colour, form and perspective. I choose the three paintings as they seem to follow each other in there scale of ambition. The first depicts a simple sweet bowl placed on a table. The viewpoint is from slightly above the rim of the bowl so that we see the sweets and the perspective of the table. The second painting, Pottery, again reduces the objects into simple geometric shapes with plain colours. However the scope of the perspective has increased. The composition drags the eye from the pots at the bottom which are seen from just above to those in the middle which are seen square on to those at the top which are seen from slightly below. The use of negative spaces between some of the pots and plates heightens the solidity of them and suggests shadows. The third painting expands upon the theme of the changing perspective but in this example, a much more complex scene, is reduced into its many lines of perspective. there is a playfulness in the way the fish-tank is set against a landscape painting. Other than the painting, which in itself uses both aerial and linear perspective, the only other colour is the orange of the fish themselves.

2. Ben Nicholson

In these two paintings the subjects are depicted into flattened shapes the second has close ties to early cubism whereas the first has a much grander scope. It is a view through a window over the roof tops to a harbour and landscape in the distance. Similar to the Still Life in the second painting the objects on the tray on the windowsill are flattened and the rooftop and buildings kept to simple shapes. However the boats in the harbour retain more form. The use of aerial perspective also gives the painting a cohesive feel.

3. Henri Matisse

The scope of these two paintings is similar. Both are looking out on the world from within a room. The emphasis is on shape although the objects retain some form and tone, particularly in the first painting. The cohesiveness of the compositions is retained by the use of the window and doorway to frame the view and draw the eye. The predominant colours are used in the titles of both paintings.

4. Gillian Carnegie

In these two paintings the subjects are reduced to simplified forms. The palette is monochrome which focuses attention on form. The use of shadows in both paintings is what makes them compelling and reveals the form of the subjects and creates the sense of perspective.

5. Hannah Maybank

Initially when looking at the paintings of Hannah Maybank I was distracted by the flower motives that populated most of her work. Once I had got past this distraction I started to observe the settings and the use of tone and texture. In the first painting the leaves and flowers seem to emerge from the background. The lighter tones emphasise the middle tones and focus the eye. In the second paintings it is the deteriorating, peeling paint that creates the image of the flowerheads. It is as if a faded wallpaper is returning to nature. In both paintings the title references ghosts. In the first suggested emergence, the second a fading away.

6. Rebecca Scott

These paintings on first view look traditional in scope and content and have an illustrative feel. This is particularly true of the first painting which is all about light and shadows and has an impressionistic feel to it. The second utilises a similar technique. It is the composition A Still Life set against the backdrop of African skies and the unusual collection of objects on the table which adds interest. The third painting is a standard Still life which has partly defaced by the addition of white lines and drips. It suggest that the Still life is being viewed through a window on which graffiti has been daubed.

Summary

An diverse range of artists in which their paintings tackle some of the many different approaches to Still Life. I have tried to look beyond my initial responses look to uncover something more in each painting.

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