Chapter 1 | THE NIGHT KITCHEN

The American writer and illustrator of children’s books Maurice Sendak (1928-2012) invented a kitchen that is frequented by mini chefs at night, perhaps to make breakfast for you or to wash the dishes from the previous day. I made my own version of it. The table and objects appear to be outside, under a clear night sky with a full moon and stars. Kitchen items such as a mixer, a pepper mill, a carton of Brinta and a carton of milk resemble buildings. This is due to our low point of view: we see the objects from below, as if we were such a small chef ourselves. (see also Perspective lesson part 1 chapter 3)

The Night kitchen

Exercise 1: Choose three simple small objects from your surroundings. Place them in a compact group in front of you on a table on a raised surface, so that you look at them at eye level or slightly from below. Copy the still life with as few details as possible. Start a bit above the bottom edge of your paper so that you have space at the bottom. In the example, a student has chosen a mug, a stapler and a bottle of chocolate milk. A stapler is actually quite complicated. Objects such as a mug, a bottle and also the objects in the Night Kitchen are simpler.

Exercise 2: Give your still life an outdoor environment, day or night. To try out some more ideas, you can first trace your still life from exercise 1 (against the window on a bright day or on a light box).