Taking a Break in Rural Brazil

Rustic Still Life

In the rural areas of Brazil, fresh milk is still put into milk containers like the copper one seen here, to be taken into town. This still life gives the impression that the ranch owner came by and shared a drink of Portuguese wine with the foreman, who would have drunk his from the metal cup rather than a glass stemware. The plums may have been brought in from the orchard. Someone likes sweets, because the cookies that are always stored in big glass jars are gone. If someone wanted milk, the ladle was there to serve it. It is late afternoon, since the lantern hasn´t been lighted yet.

I set this still life up at a friend´s studio and sat on the floor in front of my midget easel, to paint it.  This is not a conventional perspective for a still life, but I wanted the cloth to become part of the composition.
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