plate no. 2282
Bouquet
recreation guide
This recreation guide addresses the painting of a floral subject in oil, attributed to Odilon Redon. While the provided sources do not contain specific visual descriptions of this particular artwork's composition or color scheme, they offer robust technical frameworks for oil painting relevant to the medium. The process relies on traditional methods described in 'The Practice of Oil Painting' and 'The Science of Painting,' emphasizing the preparation of a white, impervious palette and the use of glazing and scumbling techniques to build depth and luminosity. The approach treats the flower not merely as a botanical study but as a composition of lines and spaces, adhering to principles of contrast and harmony.
estimated time
20-30 hours over 5-7 sessions (allowing for drying times between glaze layers)
materials
6 items
steps
6 in sequence
materials
| item | purpose | modern equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Canvas or panel sized with cheese paste (caséine) | Provides a stable, white ground for oil application | Pre-primed linen canvas or acrylic-gessoed panel |
| White palette (impervious to oil) | Ensures correct judgment of color transparency and prevents contamination | Tempered glass palette or disposable paper palette |
| Oil paints (Black, Ultramarine, White for underpainting; Red, Yellow, and others for glazing) | Black, ultramarine, and white are used for the initial monochrome; red and yellow tones are applied via glazing | Standard tube oil paints |
| Oil of Copavia or Linseed Oil | Medium for the first and second paintings (underpainting) | Stand oil or refined linseed oil |
| Varnish (Painting varnish) | Mixed with oil for later glazing stages to increase transparency and flow | Dammar varnish or painting medium |
| Brushes and Palette Knife | Application of paint and mixing | Hog bristle and sable brushes |
preparation
surface prep
The surface should be prepared with a white ground. Sources advise sizing the canvas or panel with cheese paste (caséine) or excellent size to ensure it is white and impervious, which allows for correct judgment of tones (Source 3). If using watercolor for the initial sketch on this sized surface, a coat of painting varnish should be laid over it before oil painting begins (Source 3).
underdrawing
The outline may be executed in watercolors or oils. If using watercolors on a sized canvas/panel, apply a coat of painting varnish over the sketch to seal it before proceeding with oils (Source 3). The drawing should focus on the arrangement of lines and spaces rather than botanical correctness, treating the flowers as an irregular pattern of lines (Source 5).
underpainting
Begin with a monochrome underpainting (grisaille). Use black, ultramarine, and white mixed with oil of copavia (or a similar medium) to establish the light and shade structure (Source 1). This step involves mentally extracting red and yellow colors to translate what would remain in nature without them, focusing on the structural values (Source 1).
color palette
Black
Bone black or Ivory black
Underpainting (grisaille) to establish shadows and structure
Ultramarine
Ultramarine blue
Underpainting (grisaille) to establish mid-tones and cool shadows
White
Lead white or Titanium white
Underpainting (grisaille) to establish highlights and structure
Red/Yellow Tones
Vermilion, Cadmium Yellow, etc.
Glazing and scumbling layers to introduce color, applied over the dry grisaille
composition
While specific details of Redon's 'Bouquet' are not described in the sources, general principles for flower compositions suggest that the space should be cut by main lines, with all lines and areas related to one another to form a beautiful whole (Source 5). The focus should be on the arrangement of floral lines into a space, creating a line-scheme rather than a mere botanical record (Source 5).
step by step
underdrawing→underpainting→first pass→drying→refining→finishing
underdrawing
step 01
Sketch the composition using watercolors or thin oil, focusing on the arrangement of lines and spaces rather than fine detail.
Tip — Ensure the sketch is sealed with varnish if using watercolors on sized canvas.
Line composition
underpainting
step 02
Apply a monochrome layer (grisaille) using black, ultramarine, and white mixed with oil of copavia. Establish the full range of light and dark values.
Tip — Mentally exclude red and yellow hues to focus on structural values.
Grisaille
first pass
step 04
Apply transparent glazes of red and yellow tones over the dry grisaille using oil as a medium. Treat this like tinting an engraving with watercolors.
Tip — Glazing is a transparent coat of color that allows the underlying painting to show through.
Glazing
drying
step 03
Allow the grisaille to dry completely before proceeding.
Tip — Rushing this step will cause the glazes to mix with the underpainting, muddying the colors.
Layering
refining
step 05
Use scumbling (semi-opaque painting) to adjust tones, particularly over darker grounds to create coldness or grey blooms.
Tip — Scumbling allows the underlying painting to make itself felt through the semi-opaque layer.
Scumbling
finishing
step 06
As mastery is gained, mix varnish with oil for subsequent glazing layers to enhance transparency and depth.
Tip — Ensure the palette remains clean and white to judge color transparency accurately.
Varnish glazing
critical techniques
Glazing
Applying a transparent coat of color over a dry underpainting to build luminosity and depth, similar to tinting an engraving.
Scumbling
Applying a semi-opaque layer of paint over a darker ground to create coldness or grey blooms, allowing the underpainting to influence the final tone.
Monochrome Underpainting
Establishing the composition's values using only black, ultramarine, and white before introducing color.
common pitfalls
- →Applying glazes before the underpainting is completely dry, which will muddy the colors and defeat the purpose of transparency.
- →Using a dirty or non-white palette, which compromises the judgment of color transparency and tone (Source 3).
- →Focusing too much on botanical correctness rather than the compositional arrangement of lines and spaces (Source 5).
- →Attempting to mix too many colors on the palette; the method relies on layering transparent colors over a neutral base.
what the sources don't tell us
Where the corpus is silent, we say so rather than guess. These are the gaps a complete recreation guide would normally cover that our source passages don't.
- ·Specific color palette used by Odilon Redon for this particular 'Bouquet' is not described in the sources.
- ·The specific composition (arrangement of flowers) is not detailed in the sources.
- ·Redon's specific personal variations on these general oil painting techniques are not explicitly detailed, though the sources describe methods used by 'old masters' and Reynolds which are applicable.
- ·The exact medium Redon preferred (e.g., specific varnish types) is not specified, though oil of copavia and painting varnish are suggested by the texts.
grounded in
The technical procedure in this guide traces to the following classical art-instruction texts.
The Practice of Oil Painting↗
- COLOURING A MONOCHROME — applied to Underpainting, glazing, and scumbling techniques
- THE FRENCH SCHOOL — applied to General materials and method context
The Science of Painting↗
- OUTLINE AND EXECUTION OF A PICTURE IN OILS — applied to Surface preparation, palette hygiene, and underdrawing methods
Composition↗
- FLOWER COMPOSITIONS TWO VALUES — applied to Compositional principles for floral subjects
Read more about the corpus on the sources page and how the guides are built on the methods page.
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