Journal of My Oil Painting Techniques

Figure drawing with accuracy is always a challenge for me, especially because I rely solely on my pure vision without any means of measuring. I drew using paint today, trying my best to establish the most accurate figure drawing as possible.

Yesterday, I knew my friend Michelle was coming by to sit for me today, but I was pondering over whether I would like to do another same old study, or if there would be anything more interesting that I can start pursuing. I felt as if it was time for me to move on to doing something more than just series of studies.

I really have not found my one definite style or technique yet, as I just always love experimenting with different kinds of oil painting techniques. I like to paint the alla prima method where I would paint rapidly in a single session focusing on spontaneity and the sketchy quality of the piece, where how it’s painted becomes more important to me than what is painted. But I also like to do more realist approaches where I would work on the piece for long hours with accurate figure drawing to start off, then really polishing things up until it becomes the most realistic and true to life. Then sometimes I also love painting purely out of imagination, producing more abstract type of paintings.

Lucian Freud stated that all his works are self-portraits. Not meaning literally but as to say that his works are distinguishable by his own personal consistent style. It’s common with most established artists as their works are always consistent with their own unique styles and techniques. So I was asking myself if I must really choose one to pursue when I love to work several different ways.

I tried to come up with a way where I can introduce all my different styles and techniques in one painting. I eventually came up with the idea of doing a realist style painting but depicting a painting with different style as the subject matter within that painting. I doodled out the idea here as I was thinking about it yesterday: It depicts a painting on an easel on the foreground and the model in the background taking a break on the sofa. This piece would be in the realist style, but on that painting on the easel, I would use whatever styles or techniques. I’m planning to do an alla prima impressionistic painting on it. I thought this would be a good way for me to keep pursuing and explore different approaches while also keeping a consistent body of work that would portray what I do.

I am working on this piece entirely from live observation and spent about three hours establishing a good figure drawing as the lay-in before applying the colors. When attempting a realist piece, I usually first do an accurate small pencil drawing on a paper, then transfer it onto the canvas, as I did with the painting of Britt that I am also working on. But since the figure element here is quite small, I just decided to go ahead and draw it right on the canvas using paint.

I first roughly blocked in the general placement of the figure, considering the composition, using the edges of a broad paintbrush.

Then I went back to the head to define the portrait painting some more, separating the light and shadow sides of the face with tones.

I began adding the features onto the solid understructure of the face I have established. I concentrated on trying to achieve the accurate likeness as well as correct tones and values. As usual, I treated the figure drawing as if I was sculpting three-dimensionally, attaching and detaching pieces of clays. This helps my each brushstrokes define the forms instead of having such strokes with purposes of just trying to make it look cool.

After working and detailing out the face some more, I moved on to laying in the figure. I still treated this nude painting as if I was sculpting, adding clays onto the armature.

Then I added more tones, value ranges, highlights, dark accents, and just polished the overall figure drawing. I also added some more details in the face as well.

Before adding the colors, I would need to work on this figure drawing a bit more when Michelle comes back.

I did a portrait painting of Kenta today. I wanted to a pencil drawing, but ended up doing a painting again. I always feel like I need more practice on painting, so I always change my mind at the last minute. Also painting is more fun.

Kenta sat for about three hours. I really loved the way how her eyes stood out from her dark skin tone. Kind of reminded me of portraits by Nicolai Fechin, where he really exaggerates the whites of the eyes against the dark skins of his sitters.

Instead of doing a pencil drawing for the lay-in, I used a large brush, as I find it easier when you prefer to draw with values instead of lines. I roughly indicated the general gesture of her head and placed it onto the canvas, thinking about the overall composition of the portrait painting. I marked a vertical line around the middle to indicate the rough center of the face.

I then began laying in some tones to model the forms more and roughly indicate the facial features. I also tried to figure out where the light is coming from and how it is hitting the surface of the head. I also used some dark values to indicate the outlines of the face.

After I felt somewhat comfortable with my rough lay-in. I decided to start throwing on some colors. I began by mixing the colors for the shadow areas of the portrait painting, using burnt umber, yellow ochre, ultramarine blue, cadmium read, alizarine crimson, and white. I made sure that the mixture is the averaged out tone of the whole shadow side of the face, so I can just block in the entire area with that hue, despite the fact that there are lot more colors and other variations happening within the region. Averaging out and blocking in is a very smart way to paint, as it omits the unnecessary details that may slow you down.

I continued to paint in the colors, defining the forms. Then I began painting in the light side of the face. I inserted the eyes into the eye-socket as if a sculptor would. Even though I was throwing on thick opaque paints, I still was able to rely on my previous lay-in/understructure and kept adding the features on top of it.

I kept modeling the face more and more, and when the whole face was pretty much covered with opaque paints, I started to indicate the other areas, such as the outlines of the hair, and the torso.

I continued defining the portrait painting, filling the whole canvas surface with thick paints. I then went back to the face and worked on it some more.

In this last stage of the portrait painting, I basically blended and polished everywhere, focusing mostly on the face. I also added more details and tightened up the face. I introduced more planes to the shadow side of the face, instead of just leaving it transparent and simplified. I used some cool temperatured colors on the shadow side to indicate those planes. I found the left side plane of her forehead to be significantly cool, almost blue, so I used the cereaulean blue to indicate that plane and was surprised by the difference it made, making the head really turn with sculptural effect.

I would have liked to keep working on this portrait painting, blending and polishing it more, experimenting with various oil painting techniques, but the natural light was starting to fade, so decided to end the session.