plate no. 2177
Portrait of a young lady with a veil
Jan Sluyters, 1907
some experience helpful
Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in loose sketching, watercolor washes, and layering colors to create depth and form. It's a good exercise in capturing a likeness with minimal detail.
technical profile
palette complexity
3
brushwork visibility
3
value contrast
2
compositional simplicity
4
study guide
est. 6 hrsapproach — 8 steps
- step 01
Lightly sketch the basic shapes of the head, hat, and veil with a pencil.
- step 02
Outline the sketch with colored pencils (blue and orange).
- step 03
Apply a light wash of brown watercolor to the hat brim.
- step 04
Add a darker brown wash to the shadow areas of the hat.
- step 05
Paint the details of the hat with watercolor, using red, green, and blue.
- step 06
Add a light wash of red to the face and neck.
- step 07
Use a blue colored pencil to add the veil dots.
- step 08
Refine the lines and add any final details.
color palette
primary · burnt sienna · red · blue
secondary · green · orange
Mix browns by combining burnt sienna with small amounts of red or blue. Use plenty of water to create transparent washes.
techniques
- ·watercolor washes
- ·colored pencil sketching
- ·layering
- ·limited palette
- ·contour drawing
common pitfalls
- →Overworking the watercolor washes.
- →Making the colors too saturated.
- →Losing the lightness and transparency of the original.
- →Not capturing the correct proportions of the face.
materials
surface · watercolor paper 140lb
required
- ·watercolor paints
- ·watercolor brushes (round and flat)
- ·watercolor paper
- ·colored pencils (blue, orange, red)
- ·pencil
- ·eraser
optional
- ·palette
- ·water container
- ·paper towels
Use a smooth watercolor paper for best results. Experiment with different brands of colored pencils to find ones that blend well with watercolor.
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