Color Basics Teaching. Oil Painting Still Life Demonstration Pictures

Author: Li Zhensheng
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-06-01
Features: Sketching first involves observing nature through one's own eyes, observing the subject. In other words, sketching is about painting what we see with our eyes, seeking depth and truth. However, this does not mean copying or imitating nature in a naturalistic manner. Short sketches should not be flat, empty, or dull, but longer works should not obsess over details and. Instead, one must keenly perceive and grasp the initial impression that comes from the heart, through color and brushwork to communicate with the subject, and continuously strengthen and enrich this feeling during the painting process. Painting too thoroughly can make the work stiff and lack vitality, while painting too simply or superficially can make it hollow and tedious. Achieving the "right balance" is a key training topic in our sketching process. In completing a sketch, how much weight is given to the objective factors of the natural subject and how much to the subjective artistic feeling is a matter of balancing and unifying these opposing and complementary elements. This is also the purpose and task of our sketching training. Sketching also trains and cultivates our ability to observe objects and the subtle changes in nature in depth, and to discover what truly moves us. Then, we use our brushwork and color to express the poetic and brushwork charm we feel in our hearts. The handling of the relationship between intention and unintention, between resemblance and dissimilarity, is the true essence of our sketching training.
Oil color sketching and gouache color sketching have now become essential subjects in the entrance exams for art majors in China's higher art institutions. Color sketching training is also the necessary path for beginners to progress from exercises to creation and artistic expression. Through rigorous color sketching training, in addition to cultivating solid realistic skills and profound color appreciation, one can also accurately and skillfully grasp the inner spirit of color sketching through long-term practice. Most of the works in this book are demonstration paintings for teaching purposes. These works demonstrate the basic methods and steps of color sketching. Although they are exercises, they reflect the fundamental teaching standards and requirements. These works vary in style and form, including short-term exercises that pursue generalization, simplicity, and wholeness, as well as longer exercises that involve in-depth research, analysis, and depiction of the subject. Some works are rendered with meticulous, subtle, and nuanced detail, while others are concise, generalized, vivid, and painterly. When I paint, in addition to fully expressing the subtle relationships between forms and colors, I focus more on the depth and richness of the overall impression. I often feel that spontaneous, expressive, free-spirited, and lingering works best embody the artistic character I seek in my heart.