This week members introduced their own work following Jitka’s talk in class 13. We reviewed 40 pictures from 12 people. The topic was interpreted very broadly. Subjects included, flowers, crockery, sculptures, tools, a lensball, electronic circuits, architectural details, bric a brac, plastic models, fruit and veg and wine glasses and bottles. Most people had paid careful attention to composition and lighting aiming for precision and clarity. Approaches varied from old master-like effects to product advertising and self-conscious humour to simple formal clarity. Optical phenomena and post processing were called on to achieve the desired results. Overall the work showed how difficult it is to do still life well.
I submitted three pictures from my project Journey Round My Room (see post 5th November 2023). Unlike most of the other work presented, these were found still lives and not artificial set ups, which I suppose sets them at odds with the historical nature of still lifes. They stood out from the other work because of the very limited colour pallet and the softness of natural light.
