Wednesday 28 March 2012

Avon Valley Artists Thursday 22 March 2012

The subject last week was painting from two tubes or pans - note not colours. I chose Indigo (Daniel Smith PB60/Pbk6)) and Quinacridone Rust (Graham PO48)). What brought this about was when I attempted to print off one of my Amerindian black and white photos. Something has gone wrong with my printer and the colour photos are just a mess despite head cleaning and other maintenance tasks. A new one is on order. I managed to print this one off but it came out in shades of bronze and sepia which gave me the idea of using the colours above.

Lishhaiahit Kiltittas Date Unknown www.firstpeople.us/ 

Lishhaiahit - 16" x 12" Waterford 140lb (300gm) Not

I first of all made the drawing not 100% accurate as you can see but essentially this was an exercise in using a very, very limited palette. I may well have another try at this one as I love the distinctive features and character of these old Indian photographs. The tilt of the head isn't quite right and his topknot is too large. Having said that it was also an exercise in portraying shadow shapes. From that point of view I was quite pleased with the result which took just over an hour.

I like Indigo from Daniel Smith. The base pigment is Indathrone Blue PB60 which is the darkest blue and, next to black, the darkest valued pigment. From my experience so far I think it needs to be used  very carefully because the presence of black can lead to dullness and, mixed with other paints, the result can appear dirty.Used full strength it is very dark but dilutes down to a range of greys. Quinacridone Rust (Graham PO48) is becoming a favourite of mine. I would describe it as a brighter and very vibrant Burnt Sienna. Added to Indigo some interesting dark shades are possible, warmed up by the Q Rust.

6 comments:

Robert P. Armas said...

Excellent Peter!I can see in every American Native portrait that you make a progress towards perfection.Loose style anyway,considering your influence by Mr.Reid style :)

Peter Ward said...

Thanks Robert. I can improve on this one though and will have another shot at it soon.

Linda Roth said...

Wonderful reference photo Peter. Strong features to work with. Your warm and cool washes are well placed. With portraiture, it takes a few "warm up" drawings to learn your subject. You did well in the first round.

Peter Ward said...

Thanks for commenting Linda. Much appreciated.

Yvonne Harry said...

Well done Peter, a difficult task in two hours. I thought you made a much better job of the mouth this time. Really like it!

Peter Ward said...

Thanks Yvonne. I think I can improve on this quite a bit and may have another shot soon - but not with two tubes of paint!