Still life is called the genre of fine art, in which the artist captures objects of inanimate nature. Translated from French, it sounds like this: "dead nature." However, the English phrase still life is considered more accurate, which translates as “still life”.
The charm of the genre
Still life art emerged as a genre in the 17th century in Holland. Representing ordinary objects, artists sought to express their plasticity, and even poetry. Throughout the history of painting, masters freely experiment with the form, color, texture of things, compositional solutions in the performance of a drawing.
Perform a still life with a pencil in stages - for beginner artists, the task is not so difficult. The main thing is to choose the right composition and see it in a spatial perspective. This short lesson will help to realize the indicated attempt.
How to draw a still life with a pencil
We will consider step by step how to start work, how not to make a mistake with the arrangement of objects in the space of the picture and correctly depict light and shadow. The very first thing that needs to be done is to pick up objects for a still life. You should not start drawing too complex objects, it is better to take the most ordinary things with geometrically understandable shapes for a drawing: a cup, fruit, a box. You can use photos, but it is preferable to pay attention to nature, since only with it you will have more opportunities to examine objects in detail and clarify details. As you master the art of still life, you can complicate the forms and compositions.
Take care of the lighting
Before drawing a still life with a pencil, we will gradually place objects next to each other, not forgetting about the light source. Objects can be located at some distance, but it will be more interesting if they slightly overlap the edges of each other. The stream of light from the lamp will more clearly emphasize the contrast of shades and highlights. Better if it falls to the side. Relying not on artificial, but on sunlight, it is necessary to remember that the luminary does not stand still, so the angles of light and shadow will change.
Let's start drawing
Before drawing a still life, with a pencil, we gradually mark out the locations of objects, as their edges and lines intersect. We clarify the plane on which the objects lie with a horizontal line behind the composition, delimiting the table and the wall. Let us outline a perspective: in order to depict objects in three-dimensional space, we will remember that they cannot be drawn on the same line. The sizes of objects that are closer to us, we will depict more than those that are located further.
We make a sketch with light moving lines. In order not to be mistaken with the proportions of objects, mentally imagine the central axis for each of them. You can depict it on a sheet on which we draw a still life with a pencil. In stages, we draw the geometric shape that underlies each object, and from it we create the object itself. The apple and the cup are based on circles, the boxes are made from parallelepipeds, the sugar bowl is based on a square, and its lid is an oval.
After the shapes are defined, we will begin to refine the objects with neat and confident lines. Using the eraser, get rid of the initial touches.
Final steps
How to draw a still life with a pencil, gradually creating the volume of objects? Here the main role is played by shadows and highlights. We copy them from nature, shading denser parts of objects darker. It is also important to pay attention to in which part of the composition the blackouts are more condensed, how and where the objects cast shadows on another object and on the plane.
We will bring the finished sketch to perfection, adjusting the details of the picture, sealing with strokes the shadows and texture of objects.