Art Group: Vegetables

The problem with having a well established art group with a compulsory indoor programme is that certain subjects have to be repeated on an annual basis. These include such subjects as spring flowers, autumn leaves, treeacotta pots etc. 'Vegetables' is one of those as well, and even though we try to change the time of year to give ourselves different selections, fruit and veg have become less seasonal, and the same choice is always available. The trick, therefore is to find an original way of either painting the subject, or making the composition.
Armed with a bit of a variety of vegetables, I decided that I would paint the group from above, hoping that the resultant work would seem a little different and maybe a bit more interesting. I spread a teatowel on the floor at the side of my chair and arranged the elements in what I hoped was an attractive way. I sat and painted them, with my board on my knees, spending the whole session looking down at the floor. (not reccommended if you have a bad back!)
 The finished painting was ok, but looked a lot more ordinary, composition wise, than I had hoped.

We always put our work up for all to look at, at the end of the session, so I propped mine up and then went back to clear away my equipment. Whilst my back was turned, there was apparently a debate as to whether the painting had been put the wrong way around! so a member or members decided to turn it the way that they assumed I had painted it. On my return, as I put it back the way it should be, there was quite some debate about which way was best. I still like the original way! This way up, the onion looks most oddly placed over the parsnip!

There was also comments to the effect that on the surface, 'vegetables' seems such a boring subject, but the reality is that once you get started, they are so infiniterly variable, and often brightly coloured, and  can make really good paintings.