plate no. 4295

The Pazzi Crucifixion (detail 2)

oilEarly Renaissancereligious paintingfigurelandscapehaloreligiousportraitrobe

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in portraiture, including capturing subtle skin tones and rendering drapery with soft folds. It also provides practice in creating a sense of depth in a landscape.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 15 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the main shapes: the figure, the robe, and the basic landscape elements.
step 02
Block in the large areas of color: the skin tones, the red robe, the black dress, and the background.
step 03
Start refining the skin tones, paying attention to the subtle shifts in value and color.
step 04
Develop the folds and shadows in the robe, using a combination of blending and layering.
step 05
Add details to the face, such as the eyes, nose, and mouth, and the hair.
step 06
Work on the background, creating a sense of depth with atmospheric perspective.
step 07
Add the halo with a thin brush and light color.
step 08
Refine the details and adjust the values as needed.

color palette

primary · red ochre · raw umber · titanium white · ivory black

secondary · yellow ochre · sap green · ultramarine blue

Achieve skin tones by mixing white with small amounts of red ochre, raw umber, and yellow ochre. Create the red robe by layering red ochre with touches of raw umber for shadows. Mix greens for the landscape by combining yellow ochre and ultramarine blue.

techniques