Packham Pear

oil on linen panel/ 7x5" / unframed / sold

How this painting looks framed:

Quick, close your eyes! Now open them. What part of the pear do your eyes look at first after you open your eyes?

This painting is a good example of chiaroscuro and the use of edges to create a three dimensional-looking object on a two dimensional surface, a true abstraction. The pear's shadow and the background are kept in a close value range. If you squint your eyes, you'll see that the shadow of the pear and the dark background form one shape. Against this dark, is the light on the pear to which your eyes are drawn. 

The harder edge on the left side attracts your eyes to the light side. The highlight holds your eyes on the light and away from the left edge even though it's sharper than the right edge. The softer edge on the right, the shadow side helps the pear turn into the background. The right edge is found and then lost to create dimension. Also notice the shadow of the pear is very simply stated. The shadow is plain and transparent. There are no added layers of paint. This simple shadow helps the pear look three dimensional and to hold viewer's eye on the lit side of the pear, which has thicker paint.