Many thanks to Lesley McBride, who kindly provided the photos and commentary for this demo.
The still life Carolyn selected to work from was this:
Artists often pick out one aspect of the still life.
Difficult to know where to start? Consider:
- Look at line
- Look at colours: are they warm or cool? Colours talk to each other with often magical results. Try using a colour wheel to see how each colour affects another.
- Look at light/shadow/shapes. Remember you can also use the negative spaces. Cubists use shapes as their main focus. Always make sure you have a focal point.
You may choose to be either objective using the colours and shapes of the object in front of you, or you could be non-objective and express your feelings about the object without actually painting any physical aspects of the object itself.
You should think about colour, tone, light value and composition
Carolyn started by establishing her focal point, which in this case were the flowers. She wanted the focal point to be vibrant and lively with the base more subdued.
She decided to use the jug handle opting for black as this leads the eye up to the focal point. (Use black sparingly.)
She put some folds of fabric into the base using subdued colours which complemented the rest of the painting.
Red was used in the base to lead your eye around the painting. 
This is the finished work, completed in less than 30 minutes.
