Het Nederlandse Stilleven 1550-1720
When we came back from a visit to the Prinsenhof in Delft, I made a resolution that I would learn about the art of still-life. I want to be able to paint a lemon like Willem Heda...
You can buy reproductions, in real oils, for instance of:
at Art Unframed. I believe they do prints,too. But that doesn't really satisfy: I want to know how to do it myself. One think I've already noticed is that a lemon doesn't stay fresh for long enough to paint from life; oils dry slowly, and lemons go bad quickly... Indeed, in this book, published for a special exhibition, there are several completely mouldy lemons to be seen on paintings. Apparently those painters weren't quick enough either.
It's a pity that this book doesn't say much about the technique of painting. Instead, some paintings are described in excruciating detail. Look, I can see there's a lemon on that painting. No need to tell me. Better tell me how to paint that lemon... But other articles are more interesting. It's easy to lose oneself in the biographies of painters or the symbolism of herring, beer and bread. And the colour reproductions are first class.
The book isn't expensive: about sixteen euros, and handsomely printed and bound by Waanders: you can buy it by clicking on the cover:
