I want to share the progress on an oil painting commission I'm working on. After I draw the subject onto the canvas I apply an "underpainting" made up of a thin wash of burnt umber and ultramarine blue. I concentrate on the values here - it's a "road map" for me for future paint applications.The subject is the grand daughter of the client, painted from a photograph supplied by the client. The canvas is 16" x 20" linen.
The picture to the right shows the progress made on the second day of painting. This was actually several days after I had done the underpainting - it's always a good idea to let the underpainting dry well before applying the next layers. I concentrated on the face on this day - this will be the main focal point of the painting and must be done well. I use a limited pallet of colors: Titanium White, Cadmium Red Light, Cadmium Yellow Medium, Yellow Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Cobalt Blue, and Ultramarine Blue.
