plate no. 3436

Self-portrait

oil, canvasPost-Impressionismself-portraitportraitfigureself-portraitmanfaceshoulders

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in portraiture, color mixing for skin tones, and creating form with subtle value changes. It also provides practice in capturing likeness and expression with loose brushwork.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 8 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Sketch the basic shapes and proportions of the head, shoulders, and neck.
step 02
Establish the background color with a thin wash of ochre and yellow.
step 03
Block in the main areas of light and shadow on the face and body using a limited palette of earth tones.
step 04
Begin refining the facial features, paying close attention to the angles and shapes of the eyes, nose, and mouth.
step 05
Add subtle color variations to the skin tones, using pinks, blues, and greens to create depth and dimension.
step 06
Define the beard and hair with short, broken brushstrokes.
step 07
Refine the background, adding subtle variations in color and texture.
step 08
Add final highlights and details to the face and body to complete the portrait.

color palette

primary · yellow ochre · burnt umber · titanium white

secondary · ultramarine blue · cadmium yellow · alizarin crimson

Achieve skin tones by mixing yellow ochre, burnt umber, and titanium white, with small amounts of alizarin crimson and ultramarine blue for subtle variations. Use more yellow ochre for highlights and burnt umber for shadows.

techniques

·alla prima
·broken color
·scumbling
·color mixing
·portraiture

common pitfalls

→Overworking the painting and losing the loose, expressive brushstrokes.
→Getting the proportions of the face wrong.
→Using too much white and creating chalky skin tones.
→Ignoring the subtle color variations in the skin.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·stretched canvas
·oil paints (yellow ochre, burnt umber, titanium white, ultramarine blue, cadmium yellow, alizarin crimson)
·palette
·palette knife
·linseed oil
·odorless mineral spirits
·selection of brushes (round and flat)
·rags