Still life in focus
Practical evening course
5 July 2017 6.15 - 9.15pm12 July 2017 6.15 - 9.15pm19 July 2017 6.15 - 9.15pm26 July 2017 6.15 - 9.15pm
The Life Room, Royal Academy Schools
£420. Includes all materials and a drinks reception at the end of the final session.
Terms and conditions
This four-week evening class is an exciting opportunity to explore in depth the essential elements of drawing and painting still life. Working from a variety of still-life compositions, and using a range of materials, this course introduces different themes relevant to successful still life painting under the guidance of practicing artist Adele Wagstaff.
Still life painting as an independent genre has roots in the art of the ancient world, from mosaics and wall paintings to frescoes. Today it has evolved to include an exciting variety of styles, applications and approaches, which are central to the work of many leading contemporary artists.
Given the interests in the arts of antiquity during the Italian Renaissance, there was a revival in still life and its application in both fresco and later painting. By the 16th century still life had become a distinct genre and professional specialisation for artists across northern and southern Europe and flourished to an unprecedented scale in Dutch and Flemish art from the 17th Century. The 18th century saw a continued refinement of the still life as a genre and technique providing remarkably life-like representations before the invention of photography. Although still life fell from favour in the European academies "hierarchy of genres" in the early 19th Century, still life as a focus for artists again saw a resurgence in the late 19th Century with the rise of impressionism and post-impressionism.
Still life has been successfully adopted, interpreted and re-interpreted by contemporary artists and provides a fascinating insight into life - whether in the relationship between objects, their placement, lighting or colour as well as their symbolic and metaphoric meaning.
In this series of expert led workshops, participants are introduced to the remarkable genre and techniques of the still life. The workshops provide an opportunity to learn both from the works of past masters and expert led, hands-on tuition to explore both classical and more recent methods, tools and techniques for the creation of evocative still life artworks.
About the course
This four-week evening class is an exciting opportunity to study in more depth the essential elements of drawing and painting still life. Working from different and varied still life compositions, and using a wide range of art materials, black and white as well as colour, this course introduces and explores different themes in detail under the guidance of practicing artist Adele Wagstaff.
The course will reference and make use of expertly selected items from the Royal Academy’s unique Archives and Collection – an exceptional scholarly reference and teaching tool which has informed artists and their practice since the Royal Academy’s foundation in 1768. As well as learning from carefully chosen archival material, participants will develop skills in observation, representation and rendition.
Participants will focus on different themes within the genre of still life, analysing colour relationships, shape, form, design and pictorial structure. Working under different light conditions and with different materials, in black and white as well as in colour, from a wide variety of still life objects.
Each session will be clearly defined by focusing on a different theme and subject within still life:
Wednesday 5 July
Week 1: Tabletop meditations, working from a small number of objects. Focusing on the work of Craigie Aitchison RA, Euan Uglow and Morandi.
Wednesday 12 July
Week 2: Tumbling tabletops, inspired by natural forms of flowers, fruit and vegetables while focusing on the work of Cezanne, Cotan and Caravaggio.
Wednesday 19th July
Week 3: Reflections, focusing on the work of Chardin, William Nicholson and Velazquez.
Wednesday 26th July
Week 4: Painting the theatrical, set-ups to include plaster casts & sculpture. Looking at the work of Gericault, Goya and Zurbaran.
This course is suitable for all levels, preferably with some prior experience of drawing, painting or creative practice in general.
This course is for you if:
• You have some prior knowledge of drawing and/or painting and would like to extend your skills in the practice of working from both perception and direct observation.
• You would like a new perspective in your approach to still life.
• You would like the opportunity to develop your skills and ideas in a small group setting in the historical setting of the RA’s Life Room
• You have no prior experience of still life, but an interest in the history, theory and practice of the still life genre and art more widely.
Minimum age 18
The number of participants is strictly limited to enable detailed feedback from the course tutor.
Price £420
6.15pm - 9.15pm on each session
Includes:
• An expert introduction to the Academy with particular reference to relevant works in the Collection
• The opportunity to work from different still life set ups and composition at each session
• All practical materials
• A drinks reception at the end of the final session
• A certificate of participation upon course completion
About the tutor
Adele Wagstaff
Painter Adele Wagstaff trained at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and the Slade School of Fine Art where her teachers included Andrew Maclaren, Myles Murphy, Patrick Symons, Norman Norris and Euan Uglow. Following her graduation from the Slade, where, in the Life Room Adele focussed her practice on working from the nude in sustained poses, Adele continues to focus on the human figure, portrait and still life.
About the space
The Life Room
The Course is taught in the Academy’s historic Life Room, nestled in the heart of the RA Schools and not often open to the public. This unique and important space was designed in the 1860’s when the galleries and art school moved to Burlington Gardens. The semi-circular seating arrangement is based on an ancient design and can trace its British history back to the 1730s and Hogarth’s Academy in St Martin’s Lane. The directional light is used, then as now, to help to delineate the human figure enabling life drawing, which has been practised in this room by generations of Royal Academy artists and students.
Our courses and classes programme
Our programme of short courses and classes offers the opportunity to explore a range of subjects, led by expert tutors and practising artists.