the atelier method 5
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Next, I painted the main dark areas of the faces, both under the chin and in the eye sockets. Note how I made no attempts to
mark out details at this stage – the black areas on the eyes should make it look as if your sitter is wearing dark glasses. I also lightened up the top lip and softened the dark under the chin.
At this stage, I was further refi ning the shape and colour of the face. The detail photo reveals how much the surface of the
painting can look like a patchwork quilt when you view it up close. Don’t worry about it at this stage – the real refi nement comes later.
Further refi nement is taking place. You can see how a patchwork of colour is beginning to disappear and the main areas are emerging as we begin to add further paint on top of that initial base.
5 8 9
I slightly adjust the angles of the light and the dark strokes to help refi ne the eye sockets and the area around the mouth.
Throughout the painting process, I kept going back to the mouth. The mouth is a thing of simplicity yet will always be changing – don’t fi ght the urge to refi ne or correct it. In my opinion, the shape of a mouth better refl ects the sitter’s state of mind than the eyes; one can lie with the eyes, but not with the mouth, which tightens a fraction when it is being untrue.
At some point you have to bite the bullet and do the detail of the eyes. The eyes and the mouth are the last areas of detail. I try
and keep the darks and lights clean, and am careful to note the bit between the eyelash and the brow – a crucial distance. The pinprick of light in the eyes I leave until the very end. They make the eyes suddenly jump to life – an impressive but easy trick.
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With the larger areas done, you can now play
with the detail and refi ne endlessly using smaller and smaller brushes as you go. It’s still rough as it is and could be refi ned further, but I think there is a beauty in the fast, impromptu brushwork. You will note that the thick white stroke on the arm didn’t change from the beginning to the end. Even with more time, I probably would have left it like that. A&I
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10 Artists & Illustrators 69
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