plate no. 7805
The Bedroom
Vincent van Gogh, 1888
experienced study
Students would develop confident brushwork techniques and learn to use bold, expressive color choices while managing perspective in interior spaces with multiple furniture pieces.
technical profile
palette complexity
3
brushwork visibility
4
value contrast
3
compositional simplicity
4
study guide
est. 8 hrsapproach — 8 steps
- step 01
Sketch the room's basic perspective with the bed as focal point
- step 02
Block in the major color areas - blue walls, yellow bed, purple floor
- step 03
Paint the bed frame with confident yellow ochre strokes
- step 04
Add the blue wall color with vertical brushstrokes
- step 05
Paint the furniture pieces - chairs, table, washstand
- step 06
Add the window and door details with green and blue
- step 07
Paint the wall decorations and hanging pictures
- step 08
Refine details and add final expressive brushwork
color palette
primary · ultramarine blue · cadmium yellow · yellow ochre
secondary · viridian green · cadmium red · raw umber · titanium white
Mix warm yellows with touches of orange for bed, blend blues with white for walls, use purple mixtures for floorboards
techniques
- ·expressive brushwork
- ·color blocking
- ·perspective drawing
- ·complementary color relationships
common pitfalls
- →overworking the brushstrokes
- →getting perspective wrong on furniture
- →muddying the bold colors
- →making details too tight
materials
surface · primed canvas or canvas board
required
- ·#6 flat brush
- ·#4 flat brush
- ·#2 round brush
- ·ultramarine blue oil paint
- ·cadmium yellow oil paint
- ·yellow ochre oil paint
- ·viridian green oil paint
- ·canvas 16x20
optional
- ·palette knife
- ·painting medium
- ·#8 flat brush
- ·fan brush for texture
Van Gogh's thick paint application may require more paint than typical - have extra tubes of primary colors
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