plate no. 2636

Gravesend Bay (aka The Lower Bay)

oilImpressionismlandscapewaterpierdockskyboatsseascape

recreation guide

William Merritt Chase’s *Gravesend Bay* (1889) is a quintessential example of American Impressionism, reflecting the artist’s shift toward landscape painting in the late 1880s, a move likely influenced by the landmark 1886 exhibition of French Impressionist works in New York (Source 6). Unlike the detailed topographical views often associated with earlier American landscape traditions, Chase’s approach here emphasizes the 'noble sense of color' and the 'subtle elusive tints' characteristic of his style (Source 6). The work captures the atmospheric conditions of the bay, prioritizing the coherent composition of sky, water, and land elements typical of landscape art, where weather and light are central compositional drivers (Source 1).

estimated time

20-30 hours over 5-7 sessions

materials

4 items

steps

5 in sequence

materials

item	purpose	modern equivalent
Oil paints (Ultramarine, White, Black, Yellow Ochre, Vermilion/Red Lead)	Primary pigments for underpainting and glazing	Titanium White, Ultramarine Blue, Ivory Black, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Red
Oil of Copavia (or modern stand oil/linseed oil)	Medium for glazing and scumbling, as cited in Reynolds' method which influenced old master techniques Chase studied	Stand oil or refined linseed oil
Canvas or panel	Support for the oil painting	Linen canvas primed with gesso
Varnish	For final glazing layers if following the mixed varnish/oil technique	Dammar varnish or synthetic resin varnish

preparation

surface prep

Prepare a neutral or slightly toned ground. While specific preparation for *Gravesend Bay* is not detailed, Chase’s training in Munich under Karl von Piloty and Alexander von Wagner involved rigorous academic foundations (Source 7). A smooth, primed surface is consistent with the 'loosely brushed style' he adopted later, allowing for the application of transparent glazes without excessive tooth interfering with the finish (Source 7).

underdrawing

Chase’s mature Impressionist works often show little evidence of heavy preliminary drawing, favoring direct application or light sketching. Given his 'loosely brushed style' developed in Munich and his later plein air practice, the underdrawing should be minimal, perhaps just blocking in major masses of light and shadow to guide the composition (Source 7).

underpainting

Consider a grisaille (monochrome) underpainting. Source 3 describes a method where the artist mentally extracts red and yellow colors, painting the remaining tones in black, ultramarine, and white. This creates a value structure upon which color is later glazed. This technique, attributed to Sir Joshua Reynolds and practiced by old masters, aligns with the sophisticated layering techniques available to an artist of Chase’s training (Source 3).

color palette

Ultramarine

Pure Ultramarine Blue

Underpainting and sky/water tones; cited as a primary color in Reynolds' method for the first painting stage (Source 3).

White

Lead White or Zinc White

Highlights and mixing with ultramarine/black for the grisaille underpainting (Source 3).

Black

Ivory Black or Lamp Black

Shadows and defining forms in the monochrome underpainting (Source 3).

Yellow/Red Tones

Yellow Ochre, Vermilion, or Red Lead

Glazing and scumbling over the dry grisaille to introduce warmth and local color, mimicking the 'subtle elusive tints' of Chase’s style (Source 3, Source 6).

composition

The composition should arrange the elements of the bay—sky, water, and distant land—into a coherent whole, as is standard in landscape painting where the sky is almost always included and weather is an element of the composition (Source 1). Chase’s landscapes from this period often featured people prominently, but if none are visible in this specific view, focus on the atmospheric perspective and the interplay of light on the water, consistent with his interest in capturing the 'epic scope' or atmospheric beauty of nature, albeit on a smaller scale than the Hudson River School (Source 1, Source 2, Source 6).

step by step

underpainting→drying→finishing→glazing→scumbling

underpainting

step 01
Create a grisaille underpainting using only black, ultramarine, and white. Establish the value structure of the bay, sky, and land masses.
Tip — Mentally extract red and yellow colors, focusing on the forms that would remain if those colors were absent (Source 3).
Grisaille

drying

step 02
Allow the grisaille to dry completely before proceeding.
Tip — Ensure the underpainting is dry to prevent muddying the subsequent glazes.
Layering

finishing

step 05
Refine the 'noble sense of color' and 'subtle elusive tints' characteristic of Chase’s style, ensuring the composition captures the atmospheric conditions of the bay.
Tip — Focus on the interplay of light and weather, avoiding overly detailed topographical precision in favor of atmospheric coherence (Source 1, Source 6).
Impressionist Brushwork

glazing

step 03
Apply transparent coats of yellow and red tones over the grisaille using oil as a medium. This introduces the local colors of the landscape.
Tip — Apply thinly, allowing the underlying values to show through, similar to tinting an engraving with watercolors (Source 3).
Glazing

scumbling

step 04
Use semi-opaque paint (scumbling) to adjust tones and add texture, particularly in areas where the underlying painting should still be felt.
Tip — Be aware that scumbling over a darker ground can tend toward coldness, potentially creating a 'grey bloom' effect suitable for atmospheric haze (Source 3).
Scumbling

critical techniques

Glazing and Scumbling

Used to build color and luminosity over a monochrome underpainting. This method, though sometimes prejudiced against by modern painters, was practiced by old masters and aligns with the sophisticated layering techniques available to Chase (Source 3).

Atmospheric Composition

Arranging landscape elements (sky, weather, land) into a coherent composition that emphasizes the spiritual or aesthetic benefits of natural beauty, a trait shared with the Hudson River School’s philosophical ideals (Source 1, Source 2).

common pitfalls

→Overworking the paint: Chase’s style is characterized by a 'loosely brushed' technique; excessive blending can lose the vitality of the Impressionist effect (Source 7).
→Ignoring the underpainting: Skipping the grisaille stage may result in a lack of depth and luminosity that glazing provides (Source 3).
→Too much detail: Avoid topographical precision; the goal is a coherent composition of natural scenery, not a map-like record (Source 1).

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 choices for *Gravesend Bay*: The sources do not list the exact pigments Chase used for this specific painting, only general palette tendencies.
·Exact compositional layout: No source describes the specific placement of elements in *Gravesend Bay*, so the composition notes are generalized to landscape conventions.
·Plein air vs. Studio: While Chase taught plein air painting, it is not explicitly stated if *Gravesend Bay* was painted entirely outdoors or finished in the studio.

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 and glazing techniques

cross-referenced from

Named facts about this artwork and artist were checked against these reference pages.

Wikipedia: Landscape painting↗
- Landscape painting — part 1 — applied to Composition and subject matter conventions
Wikipedia bio — William Merritt Chase↗
- Style and subject matter — applied to Artist’s style and color sense
- Landscapes — applied to Context for Chase’s landscape work