plate no. 3674

The Count of Tajo

oilRomanticismportraitportraitfiguremanclothingjackethair

recreation guide

The Count of Tajo (1800) is a portrait by Francisco Goya, created during his tenure as Prime Court Painter, a period marked by his depiction of the Spanish aristocracy. As a Romantic-era work, it reflects Goya’s transition from Rococo influences toward a more modern, psychologically intense style. The painting is executed in oil, a medium Goya mastered through traditional Old Master techniques. While specific visual details of the Count’s attire or expression are not described in the provided sources, the work belongs to a genre that historically served as a record of the sitter’s appearance and status. Goya’s practice during this era involved rigorous craftsmanship, likely employing layering techniques common to the Old Masters to achieve depth and luminosity.

estimated time

40-60 hours over 6-8 weeks (allowing for drying times between glaze layers)

materials

6 items

steps

6 in sequence

materials

item	purpose	modern equivalent
Oil paints (Black, Ultramarine, White, Yellow, Red)	Primary pigments for grisaille and glazing	Artist-grade oil paints
Linseed oil	Medium for thinning paint and creating glazes	Refined linseed oil
Mineral spirits or turpentine	Solvent for cleaning brushes and thinning initial layers	Odorless mineral spirits
Canvas	Support surface	Linen or cotton canvas, primed
Charcoal or thinned paint	Underdrawing	Vine charcoal or raw umber thinned with solvent
Varnish	Mixed with oil for later glazing stages to increase transparency	Dammar varnish or similar resinous varnish

preparation

surface prep

The canvas should be prepared with a ground suitable for oil painting. While the specific ground for this portrait is not detailed in the sources, traditional practice involves a stable base to prevent cracking. The artist must ensure the surface is ready to accept oil layers, adhering to the 'fat over lean' principle to ensure permanence (Source 3).

underdrawing

Traditional oil painting techniques often begin with the artist sketching the subject onto the canvas with charcoal or thinned paint (Source 3). Goya, as a sound craftsman, would have established the composition and likeness at this stage, ensuring the 'alphabet of our art' was correctly applied before proceeding to color (Source 2).

underpainting

The process likely involves creating a monochrome underpainting, or grisaille. The artist should mentally extract red and yellow colors, translating what would be left in nature if these colors were not present (Source 1). This grisaille establishes the tonal values and forms before color is introduced.

color palette

Black

Bone black or ivory black

Grisaille underpainting and shadows

Ultramarine

Natural ultramarine

Grisaille underpainting and cool tones

White

Lead white or titanium white

Highlights and mixing tints in grisaille

Yellow

Yellow ochre or lead-tin yellow

Glazing and scumbling to introduce warmth

Red

Vermilion or red lake

Glazing and scumbling to introduce warmth and flesh tones

composition

The sources do not describe the specific compositional layout of The Count of Tajo. However, Goya’s portraits from this period were intended to achieve a recognizable likeness of the sitter, serving as important records of the aristocracy (Source 5). The composition likely adheres to the principles of chiaroscuro, where juxtaposition of tones creates a gradation of light, enhancing the three-dimensional form (Source 4).

step by step

underdrawing→underpainting→first pass→refining→finishing→varnishing

underdrawing

step 01
Sketch the subject onto the canvas using charcoal or thinned paint to establish proportions and likeness.
Tip — Ensure the drawing is accurate, as it serves as the foundation for the painting.
Underdrawing

underpainting

step 02
Create a grisaille using black, ultramarine, and white mixed with oil of copavia or linseed oil. Focus on tonal values, mentally excluding red and yellow hues.
Tip — Ensure the grisaille is completely dry before proceeding to glazing.
Grisaille

first pass

step 03
Apply glazes of yellow and red tones over the dry grisaille. Use oil as a medium initially.
Tip — Glazing involves applying a transparent coat of color, allowing the underlying painting to show through.
Glazing

refining

step 04
Use scumbling, a semi-opaque painting technique, to adjust tones and textures. This can create a grey bloom or coldness when employed over a darker ground.
Tip — Scumbling allows the underlying painting to make itself felt, adding complexity to the surface.
Scumbling

finishing

step 05
As mastery increases, mix varnish with oil for subsequent glazing layers to enhance transparency and depth.
Tip — Ensure each layer contains more oil than the previous one to adhere to the 'fat over lean' rule.
Varnish Glazing

varnishing

step 06
Allow the painting to dry completely. Oil paint dries by oxidation, typically within two weeks.
Tip — Do not varnish until the paint is fully dry to prevent cracking.
Drying

critical techniques

Glazing

Applying a transparent coat of color over a dry underpainting to build up luminosity and depth. Goya, like other Old Masters, likely used this method extensively.

Scumbling

Applying semi-opaque paint over a darker ground to create texture and tonal variation, such as a grey bloom.

Fat over Lean

Ensuring each additional layer of paint contains more oil than the layer below to prevent cracking and peeling.

common pitfalls

→Applying layers with less oil than the previous layer, which can cause the final painting to crack and peel (Source 3).
→Attempting to glaze before the grisaille is completely dry, which can ruin the underpainting.
→Over-modeling or being too tied down to the outline, which can result in a small, timid appearance. Copying works like Reynolds’s portraits can help correct this tendency (Source 2).
→Ignoring the law of simultaneous contrast, which can lead to inaccurate color perception and application (Source 7).

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.

·Specific visual details of The Count of Tajo, such as clothing patterns, jewelry, or facial expressions, are not described in the sources.
·The exact pigments used by Goya for this specific painting are not detailed, though general Old Master practices are inferred.
·The specific ground preparation for this canvas is not described, though general oil painting practices are noted.

grounded in

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

The Practice of Oil Painting↗
- COLOURING A MONOCHROME — applied to Grisaille, glazing, and scumbling techniques
- ON COPYING — applied to Craftsmanship and correcting tendencies like over-modeling
Laws of Contrast of Colour↗
- 6. Put beside each other two flat tints — applied to Chiaroscuro and tonal gradation

cross-referenced from

Named facts about this artwork and artist were checked against these reference pages.

Wikipedia: Oil painting↗
- Oil painting — part 2 — applied to Underdrawing, fat over lean rule, and drying times
Wikipedia: Portrait painting↗
- Portrait painting — part 1 — applied to Purpose of portrait painting and likeness
Wikipedia bio — Francisco Goya↗
- Francisco Goya — part 1 — applied to Context of Goya’s career and style