Painting realistic looking glass in oils so that your subject looks like actual glass may seem complicated, but with practice its not as difficult as you may think.
1.Set up your still life
I use medicine bottles, glass vases and carafe's to hold beautiful flower cuttings from my garden, I have found that glass looks better with a great light source.
2.Sketch out your subject onto your prepared board or canvas
3.First paint what your glass holds
I like to block in my lights and darks so i can layer the elements of the glass on top making it look like the contents (water, stems etc.) are INSIDE the glass
4.Block in the darks and shadows in the surroundings
5.Fill in all the mid-tones and background
6.Start adding in the lighter reflections showing on the glass, the use of certain colours like yellows and greys can help define the glass subject and round it out
7.Finish with white highlights - ONLY where the light is brightest
I find just a few highlights go very far.
With the right amount of practice glass can be a beautiful and fairly easy element to add to your still life collection.
I hope you have found this inspiring for the next time you see a beautiful viola or pansy in a vase that you would like to capture.
If you are wanting to perfect your technique or are just starting out on your art journey, why not join the art classes offered by @capepalette
