May 2009
Newsletter page 1: Tips & Techniques
Third and final part of my Article on Portrait and Figurative Painting
- formerly featured in Australian Artist Magazine I have several articles that have been published in books, magazines and online. Many of you will have missed the opportunity to enjoy these in the publications so each newsletter has an article or portion of an article which I hope will inspire you to have your brushes flying. This newsletter issue will feature the third and final part of my article:
(Archived newsletters containing previous portions of the current article can be found HERE) "Capture the intangible" - Part three (Click all images to enlarge)
'Self Portrait 1'
Watercolour on Arches Hot Pressed Paper 300gsm (140lbs) Moulding form with line, hue, colour temperature, and tone. Tonal Yellow underwash
In all of my paintings, I now create a yellow tonal underwash. This has many benefits. The impact on the final painting is huge. It gives a true sense of substance and dimension to my work. I also enjoy that it creates a tonal map which enables me to see the impact of my study - long before it is finished. If my subject is a difficult one - the tonal underwash maps out the areas from light to dark and allows me to see in an instant which area is which. Where my final tones are to remain light - I use very little yellow in my tonal underwash. Naturally where the final tones are to be dark I may use three or four priming sets of washes to create enough depth of yellow so it can glow through even the richest dark hues. Yellow underwashes take away the raw look of colours and establishes a look of substance that can almost feel palpable. Materials: I use Arches hot pressed paper as this has a wonderful hard-sized (coated) surface which is ideal for fine detail and smooth washes for flowers and figurative work. I stretch my paper on ½ -¾ inch gator board and use brown gummed watercolour stretching tape. (Since writing this article I now use Lukas water-activated gummed tape which is white) It will be available from Jerry's Artarama from 1st July. Try it - it is brilliant!) The thickness of the gator board depends on the overall dimensions of the paper. Thicker board will enable you to stretch a larger piece of paper without the concern of it warping. I use Schmincke pigments for many reasons - mostly because they are superb quality and fabulous to use. They have many benefits - too many to go into here - but because they are beautifully finely ground and luminous - they are perfect for my methods and this also makes them economical as they last so long. Any brand of artists' quality transparent pigments should be fine but the emphasis is on transparent or semi-transparent. My methods will not work with opaque or semi-opaque pigments. There are numerous other advantages and extensions to these methods. There are too many points to share with you here - it would be another book - and it is all on my DVD. But I suggest you begin with my Priming Method (mentioned in the previous newsletter - available in the archives) and if you remember those points you will see how your paintings take on a new dimension and amazing reality and sense of presence.
'Shelley'
Watercolour on Arches Hot Pressed paper 300gsm (140lbs)
 Stage 1 (Click image to enlarge) |
Stage 1
I always begin by building up a tonal painting using yellow underwashes and my Priming Method. Much like a black and white photograph - but using yellow instead of black and grey tones. Allow each wash to become bone dry after each set of priming washes. Avoid the highlights as these need to be kept light. Soften the highlight edges after each wash. |
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 Stage 2 (Click image to enlarge) |
Stage 2
I begin moulding the form by using natural skin tones. I lay in washes using varying mixes of Alizarin Crimson, Translucent Orange, Indian Yellow and Phthalo Blue. At this initial stage the painting will look a little disjointed and patchy. Don't panic! This is a necessary stage to go through as we are establishing the different planes on her face and arms. Although skin is generally one colour - naturally light affects how we see it - so I push my colours to favour one or other of the above hues to help me describe what I see in front of me. |
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 Stage 3 (Click image to enlarge) |
Stage 3 The eyes are created with darker hues than the skin - so I leave them until I have almost finished my washes for the skin. The eyes are created using wet on dry techniques so remember that this will sit on the surface of the paper and will be disturbed when wet again. You need to be aware that if you bring any water too close to the wet-on-dry dark eye area you will soften the detail. I like this result so am careful to ensure that my lightly wet brush touches the edges of the dark eye area. This lightly blurs the edges and adds to the naturalness of the eyes. |
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 Stage 4 (Click image to enlarge) |
Stage 4 We now have a number of washes established and you can see how this multilayered technique using my priming method and then wet-on-wet method can give you skin you can almost 'feel'. The lessons I have described for my oil painting 'Glancing Back - a Tribute to Vermeer' (above) regarding eyes and lips are exactly the same no matter what medium you choose.
The tonal range in Shelley's hair is now described with my tonal yellow underwash. |
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 Stage 5 (Click image to enlarge) |
Stage 5 -
'Shelley'
You may notice I have chosen not to use hard edges. This painting is about gentleness and subtlety and I have reflected that in the way I have kept the lines soft and the dress colour almost monotone with the skin. Her nose is soft and her nostrils are understated. Areas of the skin under the brim of Shelley's hat glow with warmth as the sun radiates through the woven silk. |
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This painting is full of nuances that when combined, support the feeling I wish to portray. Nothing shouts out - everything blends and allows the sitter's personality to speak from within the frame.
Two-Disc DVD Set |
'The Wind's Song'
Watercolour on Arches Hot Pressed Paper 300gsm (140lbs) 1100mm x 600mm
John Mansfield's poem "Sea Fever" inspired this painting. "The flung spray ... the gulls way and the whale's way and the wind like a whetted knife ..."
As I look at this painting I am transported back to the place that inspired me to paint the heavy laden, threatening sky, the gulls being tossed by the wind and the girl who's skirt and hair are being blown against her body. I feel as if I can hear the gulls' cry as it is carried by the wind. There are many threads that weave and support the narrative in this work. As the viewer is drawn further into this painting - past the obvious - their interest is held by the 'suggested' details: the lace skirt which is blown against her legs, the dumping of the wave as it plays at the water's edge, the back-washed waves as the foam bobs around on the turbulent undercurrent. The sky is almost ecclesiastical as a clear blue patch peeks through the smokey coloured clouds. A late afternoon shaft of warm sunshine illuminates the scene and the gulls as they bring the attention back to the girl. The are engaged by her and so is the viewer. Figurative painting is far more than painting a realistic figure. It is a narrative that leads the viewer to feel as if they have shared a glimpse or a moment in the life of the subject. The atmosphere we create completes the tapestry and allows the viewers an insight into the person we are portraying.
'So Far Away'
Oil on Belgian Linen
Observation also involves thinking ahead. While in London, I was captivated by these evocative windows in the famous department store 'Liberty of London'. I stood for a very long time absorbing all I could, as I knew that one-day I would use them for inspiration in a painting.
A year later I lay awake one night planning a painting of a girl engulfed in soft light from a window. What better setting than the Liberty window? But the true essence of the painting came to me when I pondered the lighting. I have always loved the misty, ethereal, hallowed shafts of light that you sometimes see bouncing off dust particles and softening everything in its path.
The excitement became too much to sleep so I began the painting in the wee small hours of one very impassioned night. I felt totally engulfed in the atmosphere the light and window created. I knew that this was what I wanted to say - that was the feeling I wanted to create. It is the perfect narrative for my story.
A portrait or figurative painting can be rich with verse and meaning without being in danger of becoming 'pretty pretty'. We all want viewers to feel engaged by our paintings. The test of a good painting is how long it stays in the memory of those who have connected with it. When the viewer leaves the exhibition we want the emotion of that painting to remain with them long after they have left it's presence.
Photograph of Susan & her oil painting 'Enchanté par La Provence'
This image is available as a TruGiclée Fine Art Limited Edition reproduction on Canvas
Contact Susan for details: susan@susanart.com
Happy Painting
PS. Here's a HOT TIP... I have discovered a fabulous archival water-activated gummed tape that has a brilliant bonus: It is white! Yes - white. So, as you can imagine, this is so much more pleasant to work next to than brown. I have spoken with Jerry's Artarama in the US and they have kindly agreed to import this product from Germany for your convenience. This tape is everything I need it to be - that is why I put so much time into arranging to have it available to you all in the US. It will be arriving in the country around July 1st. So do check the website around that time. For those interested - here is the Jerry's Artarama webpage where you can order it after July 1st.
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