plate no. 7650

Portrait of Carlos Saenz de Tejada Benvenuti

Carlos Saenz de Tejada, 1941

sanguine, paperExpressionismportraitportraitfigureboyfacehandsclothing

recreation guide

This artwork is a 1941 portrait by Carlos Saenz de Tejada, executed in sanguine on paper. While the provided sources do not contain a visual description of this specific painting, they establish the artist's identity and the medium's nature. Sanguine (red chalk) is a dry medium traditionally used for drawing and shading, distinct from oil painting. The sources provided primarily discuss oil painting techniques (Source 1, Source 3) and the biography of a different artist, Carmen Calvo (Source 2, Source 4), who shares a surname but is a distinct contemporary conceptual artist. Therefore, the recreation instructions must rely on general art-historical knowledge of sanguine portraiture and the specific warnings in the sources regarding the importance of accurate underdrawing and construction before applying any medium.

estimated time

8-12 hours over 2-3 sessions

materials

5 items

steps

5 in sequence

materials

item	purpose	modern equivalent
Sanguine chalk (red ochre-based)	Primary medium for drawing and shading	Soft red conté crayon or natural red chalk
Toothed paper (warm-toned or white)	Surface to hold the dry pigment	Strathmore 500 Series Sable or Canson Mi-Tientes
Blending stump or tortillon	To smooth transitions and create soft shadows	Paper blending stump
Kneaded eraser	To lift pigment for highlights and corrections	Standard kneaded eraser
White chalk or pastel	For highlights, if the paper tone is too dark	White soft pastel

preparation

surface prep

Select a paper with sufficient 'tooth' to grip the dry pigment. Unlike oil painting, no ground is applied; the paper surface itself is the ground. Ensure the paper is clean and free of oils from handling.

underdrawing

Begin with a light, loose sketch to establish proportions. Source 3 advises to 'Draw and then shade in charcoal' (applicable here as sanguine) and to 'make all corrections while you can in the charcoal stage' because it offers 'little resistance to a brush, and none whatever to bread' (eraser) (Source 3). Do not commit to hard lines until proportions are verified.

underpainting

Not applicable. Sanguine is a dry drawing medium, not a paint. However, the principle of building up tone gradually applies. Source 3 notes that 'One painting will not suffice to complete the study, so paint with the idea of going over it at least three or four times' (Source 3); translate this to layering chalk strokes gradually rather than applying heavy pressure in one pass.

color palette

Red Ochre/Sanguine

Natural red chalk

Primary modeling of form, shadows, and mid-tones

Paper Tone

Unmarked paper

Mid-to-light tones, depending on paper color

White

White chalk

Highlights on nose, eyes, and forehead

Black/Dark Brown

Sepia or black chalk (optional)

Deep shadows in eye sockets and hair, if contrast requires it

composition

The sources do not describe the specific composition of this portrait. Generally, portrait painting aims to 'achieve a likeness of the sitter that is recognisable' (Source 6). Source 3 advises to 'make your study slightly smaller than life' and to hold the drawing 'alongside your sitter, on a level with, and as near as possible to, the face' to check proportions (Source 3).

step by step

underdrawing→first pass→refining→finishing

underdrawing

step 01
Lightly sketch the basic shapes of the head and shoulders. Use a hand mirror or hold the drawing at arm's length to check proportions against the reference or sitter.
Tip — Source 3 warns: 'Do not hesitate to hold your brush against your model’s face to ascertain its length' (adapt for chalk) and to compare the drawing with nature 'through the hand-glass' (Source 3).
Proportional checking
step 02
Refine the outline and major features. Ensure the construction is accurate before adding tone.
Tip — Source 3 states: 'It is reckless in the extreme to put down paint with obvious errors in construction or drawing' (Source 3). Apply this to chalk: do not shade until the drawing is correct.
Construction

first pass

step 03
Begin applying sanguine chalk to establish the darkest shadows and mid-tones. Use the side of the chalk for broad areas and the tip for details.
Tip — Source 3 advises to 'use a dry brush to model with' (Source 3); in drawing, use a blending stump or finger to soften transitions, but keep edges crisp where needed.
Modeling

refining

step 04
Build up layers of tone. Work from dark to light, leaving the paper white for highlights or using white chalk to add them.
Tip — Source 3 suggests working in multiple passes ('going over it at least three or four times') to achieve depth without muddying the image (Source 3).
Layering

finishing

step 05
Adjust contrasts and sharpen key focal points, such as the eyes and mouth. Erase highlights if necessary.
Tip — Source 5 discusses the 'Law of Contrast of Colour' and how juxtaposition affects tone perception (Source 5). Ensure the contrast between light and shadow is sufficient to create form.
Contrast adjustment

critical techniques

Accurate Underdrawing

Source 3 emphasizes that errors in construction are 'fatal to lucidity' and should be corrected in the initial drawing stage (Source 3).

Proportional Verification

Source 3 recommends using a mirror and holding the drawing at eye level with the subject to check scale and proportion (Source 3).

common pitfalls

→Starting to shade before the drawing is accurate, which leads to 'fatal' errors in lucidity (Source 3).
→Over-modeling or being 'too much tied down to your outline,' which Source 3 warns against (Source 3).
→Ignoring the 'tendency to smallness' in details; Source 1 advises copying works that 'check any tendency to smallness' (Source 1).
→Applying too much pressure in one pass, resulting in a muddy or flat appearance. Source 3 advocates for multiple light passes (Source 3).

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.

·The specific visual details of the portrait (clothing, expression, background) are not described in the sources.
·Carlos Saenz de Tejada's specific handling of sanguine is not detailed in the provided texts; the instructions rely on general sanguine technique and oil painting analogies from the sources.
·The sources primarily discuss oil painting (Source 1, Source 3) and a different artist (Carmen Calvo, Source 2, Source 4), requiring adaptation of advice.
·No information on the specific paper type or chalk brand used by the artist in 1941.

grounded in

The technical procedure in this guide traces to the following classical art-instruction texts.

The Practice of Oil Painting↗
- Painting from Life — applied to Underdrawing, proportional checking, and layering technique
- On Copying — applied to Avoiding 'smallness' and correcting weaknesses
Laws of Contrast of Colour↗
- 6. Put beside each other two flat tints — applied to Understanding contrast and tone gradation