This workshop explores the principles of trompe l’oeil still life painting, focusing on creating the illusion of form and space within a shallow depth of field. Students will study historical and contemporary examples, extracting key compositional and technical strategies and applying them to their own work. Instruction will emphasize on designing a small, controlled composition; manipulating edges to push spatial depth; modeling light on form to establish strong focal points; and achieving a harmonious balance through color theory. Particular attention will be given to rendering and surface refinement in order to achieve a tight, resolved finish. Small objects and a modest painting size are recommended.