Drawing and form

Member lesson

Still life

Lesson 4 of 14 in Drawing and form.

FAAQ #2 - What is a Still Life Painting? · The Getty (archived)
Lesson

A still life is the one subject that holds completely still, under light you control, for as long as you need. That is why it has been the standard exercise for centuries and why it remains the fastest way to learn observation.

one lightoverlap tells you what is in frontthe cast shadow tells you where the thing standsobjects that only touch, never overlap, sit in no space at all
A still life set up with one light, overlapping objects and a clear ground line.
An ink drawing of a student at an easel drawing a white jug, a glass and a cloth lit by one clamp lamp, with their shadows falling to the right.
Three plain objects under one lamp, set up to learn observation.
Member

The rest of this is for members.

You have read the opening of this lesson. The rest of it comes with a membership.

One membership covers all four courses and Brands.

  • All lessons in the four Learn courses
  • All brand breakdowns in the Brands section
  • All quizzes, flashcards and crosswords
  • An AI teacher on every lesson, for up to 60 questions a day
  • All course material published during the membership

Price

Membership is from $12 a month on the Yearly plan, which is charged at $144 once a year. Lifetime access is $59, paid once.Membership is from ₹200 a month on the Yearly plan, which is charged at ₹2,400 + GST once a year. Lifetime access is ₹3,999 + GST, paid once.

Check what stuck

Members only

You can't take this check yet.

Members answer these 3 questions and keep the ticket for this lesson. Every lesson has one.

  1. Question 1, locked

    Which of these words means this? “Drawing arranged inanimate objects. The standard training exercise, for good reasons.”

    • Still life
    • Elevation and plan
    • Three-point
    • Reflected light
  2. Question 2, locked

    Which of these words means this? “Arranging the objects and the light. Half the work, done before drawing.”

    • Memory and invention
    • Unit
    • Set-up
    • Weight
  3. Question 3, locked

    Which of these words means this? “A still life carrying symbols of mortality. The genre's moral tradition.”

    • Vanitas
    • Quantity before quality
    • Dead line
    • Block-in

Elsewhere in the library

Hear about new courses.

Leave an email and we will tell you when something new lands. We do not write often.