Demo: Mike Bragg - Micro Still Life
Mike very kindly came to our rescue when Gill Drew, who was originally booked for this demo, rang to let us know she was unwell and couldn’t come.
Mike demonstrated a tiny still life. He came armed with a selection of items from his garden: two pebbles, two holly leaves, a piece of string and a seed head, along with two small but contrasting scraps of cloth. He explained that the principles of composition applied to all items, whatever the size.
First, Mike examined the item carefully to find the lines and the flow, then arranged them so that the lines flowed from one item to the other. Weight, texture and colour were also important.
The next stage was the drawing. Mike used sepia ink and a small twig, wax crayon and charcoal. He concentrated on the flow lines, the overlaps, the negative space. Then he placed a frame over the drawing to check the arrangement. The lines must encourage the eye to travel through pathways to the edge of the drawing for maximum energy. It was important to step back and criticise the drawing and adjust the still life accordingly.
He then began his painting. He started by drawing onto the watercolour paper with charcoal, referring both to the objects and the drawing. Once he was satisfied, he struck the charcoal drawing vigorously with a cloth so that only a ghost image remained. He did this for two reasons: the charcoal dust needed to be removed so that it did not dull the colour layer, and also, the drawing was only a starting point and not something just to be coloured in. He would continue to adjust as he added the colour. This was provided by watercolour layers and oil pastel, with a further details picked out with more sepia ink and with black ink using a fine stick.
Q: How small can a still life be?
A: Very small indeed: go into your garden and collect some tiny, fascinating things
Q: How large can a still life be?
A: Very large indeed: go out with your camera/sketchbook and collect some trees, a path, a winding river, a boat or two…
Mike will be running a multi media workshop on this theme on Saturday, 25th June. Book early!
