16 Artists Magazine May 2020
Build TUTORIAL
HELEN OH demonstrates how
purposefully choosing
contrasting elements can
makeforanengagingpainting.JUXTAPOSING OPPOSITES
In the genre of still life painting, the
tradition of imparting existential
ideas has deep roots in Western art.
In 17th-century Holland, the fashion
was for a didactic form of fine art,
aimed at communicating a clear
moral message to the viewer. For
example, the popular vanitas still
lifes contrasted the pursuit of wealth
with the brevity of life—sometimes
using the short-lived soap bubble
floating over worldly riches to rep-
resent humanity’s ephemeral nature.A different philosophical approach
to painting is to explore the dialec-
tic, or to juxtapose opposites within
a composition. This approach takes
the form of debate in its verbal ren-
dition, but it can also be the basis for
a still life design. Instead of aiming
to teach, this concept is open-ended,
with objects set against one another
for the purpose of comparison.
When creating a still life setup,
I sometimes use this approach as a way
to add interest and enhance the formaldesign qualities. The dialectic still life
can be formal or conceptual, and the
objects included can focus on organic
shapes versus geometric ones; smooth
textures versus rough ones; or one cul-
ture’s touchstone versus another’s.Helen Oh is an artist and conservator,
and an instructor at the School of the
Art Institute of Chicago and Palette
& Chisel Academy of Fine Arts.
She’s represented by Gallery Victor
Armendariz.SHAPE
During summer, my local farmer’smarketsarefilledwith
enticing, colorful flowers. Strollingamongthem,I often
notice their supple, organic shapessetagainsta settingof
rigid glass-and-metal skyscrapersinthebackground.Thestill
life sketch above is my attempttodescribethatminglingof
organic and geometric shapes. Iarrangedsweetpeasand
zinnia blooms inside an Italian ceramiccreamerwitha
polished aluminum cube at its right.
I started the painting by establishinga warmbackground
with a wash of Venetian red imprimaturaona white
Gessobord. Once that dried, I sketchedthemagentaand
chartreuse blooms, the white creamerandthemetalcube.
The painted decoration and its reflection came last.TEXTURE
The arrangement for Lemon (above) accentuates the textural
diff erences among kitchen items. The juicy lemon wedge
on top, the cut lemon on the bottom and the serrated knife
blade, all propped against a soft textile, create a satisfying
juxtaposition of varying materials, both organic and man-made.Flower Arrangement and
Metal Cube (oil on board, 12x12)Lemon (oil on board, 9x7)