plate no. 0612

Man with a black cap

oil, panelNorthern Renaissanceportraitportraitmanlandscapeskyclothinghat

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in portraiture, including accurate proportions and subtle skin tone variations, as well as understanding atmospheric perspective in the background landscape.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 20 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the basic shapes of the figure, hat, and background landscape.
step 02
Establish the main value ranges, blocking in the darks of the clothing and hat, and the lighter tones of the face and sky.
step 03
Begin layering skin tones, focusing on subtle shifts in color and value to create form.
step 04
Develop the background landscape, using lighter, cooler colors for distant elements to create atmospheric perspective.
step 05
Refine the details of the face, including the eyes, nose, and mouth, paying close attention to proportions and expression.
step 06
Add details to the clothing and hat, such as folds and textures.
step 07
Glaze thin layers of color to unify the painting and enhance the overall effect.
step 08
Add final highlights and shadows to create depth and dimension.

color palette

primary · ivory black · raw umber · yellow ochre · titanium white

secondary · Prussian blue · burnt sienna · cadmium red light

Achieve skin tones by mixing yellow ochre, burnt sienna, and titanium white, with small amounts of red and umber for shadows. Create atmospheric perspective by mixing blue and white for the sky and adding white to background colors to lighten and cool them.

techniques

·portraiture
·glazing
·scumbling
·atmospheric perspective
·blending

common pitfalls

→Getting the proportions of the face wrong.
→Overworking the skin tones and losing the subtle variations.
→Making the background landscape too detailed and distracting.
→Using too much paint and losing the luminosity of the glazes.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·Stretched canvas (16x20 inches)
·Oil paints (ivory black, raw umber, yellow ochre, titanium white, Prussian blue, burnt sienna, cadmium red light)
·Palette
·Assorted brushes (round and flat)
·Linseed oil
·Odorless mineral spirits
·Palette knife
·Soft cloths