Colored Pencil Step by Step

Setting Up a Still Life

with Sylvester Hickmon

Composing a still life takes a little thought and planning. Like a landscape, your still life should have a visual path that leads the viewer’s eye in and around the drawing, as well as a distinct center of interest. However, with a still life, you are in control of choosing the placement of the objects and the lighting in the scene. When setting up a still life, try including objects of different shapes, sizes, and textures to help add interest and variation. And to avoid a static still life, choose an odd number of elements. Overlap the objects—don’t align them on the same plane—and avoid horizontal lines because they lead the eye out of the picture altogether. In this beautiful still life, Sylvester ...