Assignment 2

Assignment 2

I saw a workman who had put his large coffee mug down on a newspaper and it struck me that it might make the basis of a still life.  I want to see if I can draw something that will tell a story.

I gathered my items and sketched a variety of arrangements.

1. The basic things I saw

The mug on the newspaper was basic so I added the spoon (1).  The mug belongs to my husband and I hope it will become part of the story.  I found it hard to get the paper to look as though it was sitting on the table.  This is the foreshortening the course notes warned me about.  Whilst I thought the context was interesting this composition isn't, so I added an Oreo biscuit which is probably a bit small (2).  I put the mug on a newspaper that was open, face downwards to add more interest.

2. I added an Oreo biscuit

3. Portrait format 

In sketch 3 I turned the mug round and tried a portrait format.  This configuration gave me the added problem of the foreshortening of the spoon.  This is something I need to get to grips with.

4. Looking down onto the mug

In the final sketch I looked down on  the mug and took a bite from the Oreo biscuit.  Although there's lots wrong with this sketch that at the time I couldn't fathom I think the composition has more possibilities than the others.  I can see the start of my story as well.

I had a bit of practise at the mug and tried to ignore what my brain told me and rely on my eyes.

Not quite right

Getting better

My Oreo

Throughout this work I had been troubled with the newspaper not seeming to lie properly on the table. I didn't want to dispense with it because it was integral to my story.  I decided to try my "looking down" composition using newspaper as my ground.  I taped a sheet to my sketchbook page.

A newspaper ground

The work on the mug paid off because this one is much better and the spoon had improved as well.  I think the Oreo could be a little closer to the mug but generally I'm happy.  I put some coffee rings on the left but all they did was wet the newspaper and leave it crinkled.  The main thing I don't like is the coloured photograph which is very intrusive.  I covered it up and what a difference.

No photograph

I used a mixture of pencil, fine liner, graphite sticks and soft pastels but the newspaper was very fragile and hard to work on.

I looked for a newspaper page with no coloured pictures but failed miserably so I cut strips with no headlines or colour and used PVA to stick them into my sketchbook. This had the twofold benefit of firming up my working surface and getting rid of the intrusive elements.

This is what I drew:

Getting there

When I propped the image up and stood back the Oreo was just too big and I was ready to start again. I think unconsciously I remembered that things in the foreground look bigger.  The Oreo looked just like a Wagon Wheel so as time is really pressing I decided to give it a layer of jam. Fortunately the chocolate texture was OK.

This time I used a small pot with an unglazed bottom to stamp my coffee rings and it worked much better than before.

I put in the dense shadows that seemed impossibly long.

Where's he gone?

I tried some crops:

Fig 1

Fig 2

Fig 3

Fig 1 - doesn't allow the viewer enough information to know the mug has a spoon in it.  The shadow is too dominant.

Fig 2 - Considering the biscuit is the focus it seems wrong to take any away.


Fig 3 - is the best crop because it allows the biscuit to be centre stage, shows the coffee rings well and leaves the viewer in no doubt that the coffee has been abandoned.

The newspaper has an attractive inconsistency and the tone changes throughout the image because of colour on the reverse side. The paper was much easier to use than my first try although there were parts that were a bit bumpy.

I have found before that I work better when I can get some momentum and that happened on this Assignment.

Did I tell a story?  Well, maybe but I don't know how the viewer will receive it.

Have I fulfilled the required criteria?  I think so.