The Story of St. Nicholas: The Death of the Saint

A deathbed scene staged in a geometric interior with St. Nicholas in richly ornamented black vestments lying on a red patterned cloth. Strong raking light enters from the left, casting deep shadows on the pale stone wall behind the body and creating dramatic contrast between the sunlit right side of the architecture and shadowed left. The eye enters through the kneeling mourner's back in the foreground, travels across the recumbent saint, and rises toward the celestial vision above: five golden-winged angels bearing the saint's soul heavenward against a luminous blue sky with dark cypress trees. The composition splits cleanly into earthly ceremony below and heavenly reception above.

Three distinct value regions: deepest darks in the standing saint's black robes and the kneeling figure's black habit (nearly black); a robust mid-tone band across flesh, red brocade cloth, and warm stone; and bright lights in the white vestments, pale walls, and the sky-and-angel zone. The red cloth reads as its own warm mid-tone platform. Squint and you see a strong L-shaped dark frame (left wall shadow and mourner's silhouette) supporting the central light-valued saint, with the sky as a luminous halo above.

• #312a26

  Mars black or bone black with touch of raw umber for warmth

  Standing saint's heavy outer robes, kneeling figure's black habit, deepest wall shadows

• #a4603e

  Red earth (terra rosa or venetian red) mixed with raw sienna and touches of alizarin for the rich cloth beneath the body

  The ornate red brocade cloth covering the bier and its folds

• #ccc2b1

  Lead white with Naples yellow and raw sienna for warmth

  The sunlit pale stone walls and architectural panels, brightest highlights on white vestments

• #b3aa9a

  Lead white with ochre and a touch of ultramarine

  Mid-tone areas of pale walls, especially in shadow transition zones

• #a99882

  Ochre with white and touch of burnt sienna

  Flesh tones across all figures, warm mid-tones in drapery, faces, and hands

• #5e544a

  Ultramarine or raw umber mixed with ochre and white

  Gray robes of some standing clergy, shadowed portions of garments and floor

Edges are deliberately crisp and controlled throughout—architectural lines are nearly geometric, halos are clean gold outlines, and figure contours read as readable silhouettes rather than soft transitions. Drapery folds are defined with thin dark lines, and the brushwork stays under control with visible deliberation rather than expressive texture. The surface is smooth and enamel-like, typical of tempera, with modeling of flesh built through subtle value shifts rather than blending.

1. 01

   Establish the architectural grid and composition

   Lightly draw the vanishing point of the interior (roughly center-right, set the perspective lines converging toward it). Block in the pale stone wall as three major vertical panels with horizontal divisions. Position the bier as a strong horizontal line at the middle ground, and mark the relative heights of the standing figures—tallest on the left (saint with candlestick), medium height around the body (kneeling mourners), tallest on right (the bishop). Ensure all figure heads sit on believable recession lines. This framing is architectural and must be accurate or everything will feel unstable.

2. 02

   Underpaint the major value zones

   Block in the darkest areas first: the shadow on the left wall as a large geometric dark shape, the black robes of the standing saint and kneeling figures as solid dark silhouettes. Then establish the red cloth as a warm mid-tone platform. Leave the pale walls as the brightest zones. Work thin and broad—no detail yet. This creates the backbone of contrast that will hold everything together.

3. 03

   Model the horizontal figure (St. Nicholas on the bier)

   Render the saint's ornate black vestments with careful attention to how folds follow the body's underlying form. The face should be bone-pale and serene—use your lightest warm tone. Add the decorative gold brocade details visible on the dark robes with fine brushwork and subtle yellow highlights. The figure is the compositional anchor; spend time ensuring correct foreshortening of the torso and convincing drapery weight.

4. 04

   Render the standing and kneeling mourners in the foreground

   Begin with the four figures surrounding the body. The kneeling figure in the black habit facing away is your strongest dark anchor at the bottom—ensure the posture reads convincingly from behind. For the standing figures, render flesh tones on hands and faces (the warm ochre-based tone), and vary the weight of dark robes from pure black to dark brown where light catches edges. Each figure should have distinct height and positioning in space. Pay attention to hand anatomy and drapery folds around elbows and knees.

5. 05

   Define the architectural details and refine spatial depth

   Sharpen the edges of the pale stone wall panels, add the doorway and its shadow on the right. Refine the geometric divisions and ensure perspective lines feel convincing. The architecture should read as a clear receding space—darker in shadows, brightest on sunlit planes. At this stage, the interior should feel like a real built space holding the figures, not a flat backdrop.

6. 06

   Paint the celestial vision (angels and sky)

   The upper half is your most luminous zone. Establish a clear blue sky that feels atmospheric and deep—cooler in tone than the warm stone below. Paint the five angels with pale flesh and golden wings, ensuring their halos (golden circles) are crisp and defined. The saint's soul, shown as a small pale figure being lifted by the central angels, should be nearly white and diminished by distance. Dark cypress trees in the background behind the angels ground the celestial space.

7. 07

   Render decorative details and final refinements

   Add the candlestick held by the left-standing saint (golden), refine the ornamental cross-pattern details on the red brocade cloth, and add thin outlines where needed to ensure figures read clearly. Paint the faces of visible mourners with careful proportions—small eyes, subtle modeling. Ensure the gold halos around all saints' heads are consistent and luminous. This is where the painting gains its jewel-like Early Renaissance quality.

8. 08

   Final value check and edge control

   Step back and verify your darkest darks (the black robes) are truly dark against the pale walls—this contrast is essential. Check that all architectural edges are crisp and geometric, while figure edges vary (some sharp at silhouette, some softer where drapery transitions). Ensure the red cloth reads as a distinct warm platform beneath the body. Add any final touches to hands, improve halos if needed, and ensure the sky-to-earth transition reads as a spiritual boundary, not an abrupt line.

• Treating the architectural perspective as decoration—if the recession is weak, the figures won't sit in believable space. The converging lines must be accurate from the start.
• Over-softening edges everywhere—this painting thrives on crisp architectural edges and defined silhouettes. Tempera rewards decisiveness; don't blend everything into softness.
• Making the celestial realm too similar in value to the stone below. The sky and angels must read as distinctly brighter and cooler to feel supernatural and separated from the earthly ceremony.
• Misjudging the red cloth's warmth and saturation. It's the visual anchor between the mourners and saint; if it reads as muddy or too dark, the whole composition loses its staging clarity.
• Rendering the saint's foreshortened form with incorrect proportions. The lying figure is complex—study how the torso compresses toward the viewer and the head rests at an angle. A convincing body matters more than decorative detail.

beginner friendliness

value contrast

palette complexity

compositional simplicity

brushwork visibility