Drawing and Painting Still Life Figures
Primary 4 · Creative Arts
Drawing and Painting Still Life Figures
Lesson 5 of 5
16 min
Let's begin
Keza's charcoal drawing of a jug and three tomatoes is finished. "Now I want colour," she says, "but I have no paint box." Her grandmother smiles and points at the red soil by the door, the charcoal in the kitchen and the green leaves in the garden.
"Our grandparents painted their houses with these," she says.
Red, yellow and blue are the primary colours. You cannot mix them from other colours. Mix two primary colours and you get a secondary colour.
| Colour | Where to find it |
|---|---|
| Red and brown | Red soil or red clay, crushed fine |
| White | White clay (kaolin), or wood ash |
| Black | Cold charcoal, crushed to powder |
| Green | Fresh leaves, crushed with a little water |
| Yellow | Turmeric powder from the market |
Mix each powder with a little water and a spoon of cooked cassava or maize porridge. The porridge is a binder: it glues the colour to the paper so it does not rub off. Make a brush by tying sisal or banana fibre to a stick.
Paul Signac painted this jug and vegetables on a tray in 1919, using watercolour over a drawing.
Tip
Big first, small last; light first, dark last
You can always paint dark over light, but it is very hard to paint light over dark.
Try each one first, then tap Show answer to check.
Which two colours make green?
Answer: Yellow and blue.
Byiringiro adds white to red. What does he get, and what do we call it?
Answer: Pink, a lighter red. It is a tint.
Why do we add porridge to soil paint?
Answer: It is a binder. It makes the colour stick to the paper.
Should you paint the small details first or last?
Answer: Last. Paint big areas first, then objects, then details.
Make it: Paint your still life drawing with at least three natural colours. Use a shade for the shadow side.
What you learned today
Sources and credits
The rest of the lesson, the diagrams and the exercises (Try it yourself and the practice questions) are written by Ganzaa.
Quick check
Match the two colours to the colour they make.
Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
