THE RECENT EXHIBITION of Cézanne in London pushed organic subject matters to the forefront of my mind again. For centuries, the genre of still life painting was considered a bit bland, an uninspiring second to the titan that was figurative art in the Western tradition. Cézanne proved many preconceptions wrong, as he dazzled the world with his apples. Still life painting is anything but boring and ordinary organic forms have huge scope to inspire.
They also necessitate a timeline in which to paint them. By limiting my painting to one session, both my subject matter and painting staylife can be a great marker of time, so grapes and lemons seem a good choice.
