This is a wonderfully painted still life by Richard Hearns. When looking at the composition There is a lot dedicated to lights, shadows, and thickness of paint that lends way to texture. The strong contrast of bright and darks make this painting very dramatic. The vase is very subtle with little light on the sides to show where the vase is. The flowers have a stark white with great highlights. The greenish-yellow of the cloth is large and with the smaller apple shape with similar color helps the viewers eyes move back and forth and creates a balanced composition.

This still life was set up by the dramatic drapery set up on one side which points to the vase and fruits. There is great texture in the vase with similar texture in the wood for the background. There is a good sense of rough, to smooth textures. The objects are placed in the center of the page but the subtle placement of the drapery keeps the viewer on edge.

Here is an example of a circular composition. The viewers eyes will move in a circle from one form to the next.

Triangular composition.