plate no. 5969

Self Portrait

Nadežda Petrović, 1907

oilPost-Impressionismself-portraitportraitfigureheadclothingself-portraitface

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in portraiture, color mixing, and expressive brushwork to create form and depth. It's a good exercise in capturing likeness and mood through color and texture.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 8 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the basic shapes of the head, shoulders, and background.
step 02
Establish the overall warm color scheme with a thin wash of burnt sienna and yellow ochre.
step 03
Block in the main areas of color for the skin, clothing, and background, focusing on value relationships.
step 04
Begin building up layers of paint, using short, visible brushstrokes to define form and texture.
step 05
Mix and apply the darker tones to create shadows and depth, especially around the eyes, nose, and mouth.
step 06
Add highlights to the face and clothing to create a sense of light and volume.
step 07
Refine the details of the face, paying attention to the proportions and features.
step 08
Make final adjustments to the colors and values to achieve a cohesive and expressive portrait.

color palette

primary · burnt sienna · yellow ochre · ultramarine blue

secondary · titanium white · cadmium red light · raw umber

Mix burnt sienna and yellow ochre for the skin tones, adding white for highlights and raw umber for shadows. Use ultramarine blue and burnt sienna for the dark clothing, and cadmium red light to warm up the skin tones.

techniques

·alla prima
·broken color
·scumbling
·impasto
·color temperature

common pitfalls

→Over-blending the colors, which can result in a muddy and lifeless painting.
→Neglecting the importance of value contrast, which can flatten the image.
→Getting bogged down in details too early, before establishing the overall form and color scheme.
→Not paying attention to the proportions of the face, which can result in an inaccurate likeness.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·stretched canvas 12x16
·oil paints (burnt sienna, yellow ochre, ultramarine blue, titanium white, cadmium red light, raw umber)
·palette
·palette knife
·assorted brushes (round and flat)
·linseed oil
·turpentine or odorless mineral spirits
·rags