plate no. 0856

Portrait of Ossip Zadkine

oilCubismportraitportraitfiguremanberetcubismclothing

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students understand geometric abstraction and practice value shading to create form. It will also develop skills in simplifying complex shapes into basic geometric forms.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 8 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the basic geometric shapes of the face, beret, and clothing.
step 02
Divide the face into planes using straight lines, following the example in the painting.
step 03
Block in the background with light gray washes, defining the geometric shapes.
step 04
Mix a range of gray tones from light to dark using white and black paint.
step 05
Begin filling in the planes of the face with appropriate gray values, focusing on creating contrast between adjacent planes.
step 06
Add details to the eyes, nose, and mouth, maintaining the geometric style.
step 07
Paint the beret with dark gray and black, adding subtle highlights to suggest form.
step 08
Refine the edges and add final details to the clothing and background.

color palette

primary · ivory black · titanium white

secondary · payne's gray · raw umber

Achieve various shades of gray by mixing black and white in different proportions. Add a touch of raw umber for warmer grays and payne's gray for cooler tones.

techniques