plate no. 7706

Girl with Pink Ribbon

oil, canvasImpressionismportraitportraitgirlribbonflowerdresshair

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students practice loose brushwork and capturing likeness in portraiture. It also provides an opportunity to explore color temperature and subtle value changes in skin tones.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 8 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Sketch the basic shapes and proportions of the girl's head, shoulders, and dress.
step 02
Block in the background with a dark, muted green.
step 03
Establish the main skin tones using a mix of warm and cool colors.
step 04
Paint the hair, focusing on the direction of the brushstrokes to indicate form.
step 05
Add the pink ribbon and flower, paying attention to the highlights and shadows.
step 06
Develop the details of the dress with loose, expressive brushstrokes.
step 07
Refine the facial features, focusing on capturing the likeness.
step 08
Add final highlights and shadows to create depth and dimension.

color palette

primary · titanium white · burnt umber · cadmium red · yellow ochre

secondary · viridian green · ultramarine blue

Mix skin tones by blending white, yellow ochre, cadmium red, and a touch of burnt umber. Achieve the pink ribbon color by mixing white and cadmium red. Mute colors with complementary colors.

techniques

·alla prima
·broken color
·scumbling
·color mixing
·portraiture

common pitfalls

→Overworking the details and losing the loose, impressionistic feel.
→Getting the proportions wrong in the initial sketch.
→Using colors that are too saturated or bright.
→Failing to capture the likeness of the subject.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·stretched canvas 12x16
·oil paints (titanium white, burnt umber, cadmium red, yellow ochre, viridian green, ultramarine blue)
·round brushes (sizes 2, 4, 6)
·palette
·palette knife
·linseed oil
·odorless mineral spirits
·rags