Chillies are such an evocative food - hot and spicy with that little element of danger. Use this painting to add a little spice to your room, the realism just jumps off the canvas exuding a palpable heat you can almost taste.
I use a grisaille underpainting in burnt umber with plenty of medium to mold the subject creating the three dimensional volume. This technique provides depth and detailing with the opportunity to add highlights that define the surface texture. So a sharp highlight gives the impression of a glossy surface while a slightly blended highlight looks more semi gloss as in the surface of a chilli. Once the grisaille is dry I use a vermillion wash to create the colour with the underpainting still showing through and then re-establish the highlights and shadows. Like Caravaggio's technique this gives the painting a quality of reality that is truer to the subject than simple photoghraphic accuracy.