Category Archives: Other people’s work
Spitting at Raphael, Making Shadows Grow
Pictures: (from left to right) Shadows on the marble; A green and brown dress; Bottecelli Madonna, Lippi’s Saint; Raphael Madona; Closeup of Raphael’s Madonna; Decorative work on Medieval alter-piece; Twisted wool robe lining on Medieval alter-piece. In the studio I’ve … Continue reading
Facing the Empress
I’ve finished the first draft of the Empress’ most recent face, now painting my daughter in the role of the main character, (she got a crick in her neck from keeping her head in that position while I tried to … Continue reading
Ribbon Dress
I’ve added colour to the ribbon dress worn by the girl on the right, using some Raw Sienna mixed with to fill the shadow areas, then picking out the highlights of the individual strips. The Empress’ face is deleted again … Continue reading
Colour!
The warm yellow and orange paint I’ve added to the dresses so far looks incredibly bright over the gray tones that have been the work of the last couple of months. I’ll continue adding the colours onto all the dresses … Continue reading
Veins
Painting the marble veining has made the day entertaining and worthwhile. I’ve been studying the Pre-Raphaelite painter Alma-Tadema‘s work to understand how he did his delightful passages of white stone in his beautiful paintings of an idealized Victorian version of antiquity, and … Continue reading
Cracks, Clouds, and Velatura
I’m pleased with the way the sky has been going. I added some Ceramic white to the tops of the cumuli, making them more substantial and a little fluffier than they were, again letting the top edges stay bright and … Continue reading
Legs to stand on
Actually, if you’ve been counting, you’ll know that there are only seven legs beneath the girls. I’m not adding the eighth, which should be supporting the second attendant from the right because it would mess with the rather pleasing “M” … Continue reading
Cobalt
The sky has been painted gray in preparation for a coat of Cobalt Blue, which is the favorite (and most expensive) blue chosen by Alma Tadema for those intense, richly vibrant skies that set off the marble in the foreground … Continue reading
Vespertina Quies
Burne-Jones’ painting technique while working on his Vespertina Quies, described by his student Maud Beddington: “He began by drawing the figure in Raw Umber… then he modeled the face in white and Raw Umber, lightly putting a little red on … Continue reading
Legs and Dresses
The legs are beginning to take their place, presenting a number of corrections to the structures that are immediately behind them. I’ve drafted the outlines of the top leg and sketched the bottom edge of it; tomorrow I hope to … Continue reading