Ode to Nikolai Fechin

Having once again rediscovered the work of the Russian master Nikolai Fechin , I thought I create a portrait in his style. Fechin's dramatic portraits in charcoal and oils, with a loose demeanor but a controlled hand, stirs emotion and inspires visions. More on him here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicolai_Fechin

Oil on Linen 18" by 22"

I sought to create a portrait of our friend Tijana using mostly the palette knife and was it ever fun. It is certainly hard to control especially if you are used to painting the traditional way with a brush; however the outcome is unique in its own way....

Brush control

A recently posted video on YouTube posted by me briefly covered a proper way a brush should be held when painting. It can be found here: How to paint a portrait in oil

What we contemporary realists strive for is to convey a subject matter true to live with as little strokes as possible. Give an illusion of effortlessness, even though a great deal of calculation goes into it. Greatest thing that separates an amateur and a professional is in the way they see. A beginner will view a scene linearly while a pro will see it in shapes. That is why when starting a painting, I will always grab my largest brush first to block in large shapes and then work my way down. The key at all times is to be mindful of color values. Let me illustrate through two examples.....

 

Here we have  a relatively controlled small study. It appears lifelike because I paid attention to color values at all times. However if you examine the second image of the close up you can see that this whole painting is rather abstract as a lot of it was done with a palette knife.

 

This is a more completed traditional portrait that shows much more control. Even though I started out much the same way as in the previous example I carried this painting further refining it with smaller brushes. 

Remember, don't be hung on with the details; focus instead getting the right value and color and then from there add detail as needed. Happy Painting!!!

My painting method in three steps

Herein I will describe the process that I take in completing a painting. The method here is implemented for most of my work unless the painting is completed in one session or alla prima. The paints that I use are the Windsor and Newton oil colors that I rarely thin down except when applying an under painting. I do however use linseed oil to increase consistency and flow. But overall I like to have a lot of paint on my palette and subsequently on my brush when applying it. Let's get started....

Figure1. This is the most important phase of the painting process. In the beginning part I do most of my drawing relaying exactly where I want what positioned. Secondly at this stage I examine how the overall light and dark is pleasing to the eye. For more in depth article on that read my previous post at: Light and dark of it all
So the process at this beginning stage is to draw with a raw umber and white mixture the light/shadow of the subject matter and not so much subject itself. As you can see I don't focus so much on the details of the subject but instead choose to focus on large shapes. It is at this beginning stage where you should be able to tell whether the paining will be pleasing to eye or not. For this part of the work I used a large filbert number 10 or 12 and usually takes no more then an hour or two.

Figure 2. I always start by painting in the main subject first. I have to admit that this is not the best way to paint as you should be working on everything at once so that there is an overall flow and color balance. I however focus on the main subject and the adjacent areas working my way out accordingly. As might not be apparent from the JPEG I use thicker paint in the light areas while thinning down darker areas. This if for no other reason is to have the main lit up areas pop out and the dark part recede. At this and the next stage I keep my lights separate from my darks. I threat and work on them individually always referring to my initial drawing as reference. I should also mention that I always continue to draw beyond what I did in figure 1; meaning that I constantly measure and evaluate where what is positioned.

Figure 3. Yes I've skipped a few steps to the finished work here; but really the process is the same as in figure 2. I work my way out constantly evaluation drawings, shapes, lights and darks. The end part of the painting might take the longest as I might see things that require changes because everything needs to flow together. As a general rule I leave a painting out of sight for a few days after I feel it is completed only coming back to it after. The reason is that the eye can be overwhelmed when working on one piece for to long, that I end up seeing things that might not be there. I should note that for this 'meat and potato' stage of the process I not only use a brush but also painting knives as well as my fingers.That's it...


"Dining at the 4Gats" Oil on Linen


Well that's it in a nutshell. Constant evaluation of the drawing, values, edges and color; in that order of importance. And I should mention that for the all prima works the process is similar but with no evaluative underpainting. I will hopefully post a more thorough 'painting process' in the near future. Happy painting.

A couple of new works

Girl with basket

A couple of works in the same colour range.

"Rose"

"Pears"

Light and dark of it all....

Have you ever wondered why some paintings seem to win all the prizes at art competitions while others do not? You can not seem to figure it out, but they are more pleasing to look at. Well..it's not that they are more beautifully rendered or that they have the best color balance (although that helps..more on that in the future)...It has to instead to do with the harmonious use of lights and darks within the painting. But what does that really mean? You really need to be able to see any subject you plan on painting in two values: black and white and then determine whether the patterns are pleasing and not just noise. Let me give you an example:

 

Here we have a black and white abstract design. Looking at this image I can conclude that through the use of simple shapes the overall concept is pleasing to look at. Now once you have this foundation you can go back and start placing light and dark elements individually withing your work. Kind of like this:

"Tomatoes and basket"

"Onions"

Before commencing any painting project you need to analyze the subject matter and then communicate the way light flows across that form, creating a harmonious design of lights and darks.By doing so your work will resonate and not merely be superficially exciting.