Category Archives: Magician

Shadows over Stripes

Posted on March 6, 2011 by pearce

Putting a little Van Dyke Brown over the stripy suit has made it feel far more solidly within the painting, while a drop shadow at her feet and additional work over the foreground on the left side has made a … Continue reading →

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A Wet White Magician

Posted on March 5, 2011 by pearce

The Pre-Raphaelites were famous for their use of a technique called “wet-white” painting, in which the artist first paints the flesh areas of a figure white, then blends into and over the layer of white with transparent flesh tones. I’ve … Continue reading →

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Whiter than White Stripes, Alchemical Salts

Posted on March 3, 2011 by pearce

I’ve spent a short time working with re-rendering the whites of the Magician’s clothing in order to build some substance to the paint and simply to clean up the glazes that had stained the figure while painting the background. The … Continue reading →

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Alchemical Colours and the Dirt

Posted on March 2, 2011 by pearce

Fifteenth century alchemical process followed a sequence of colour changes as the work progressed. Black (nigredo), White (albedo), Yellow (citrinitis) and Red (rubedo). Now coloured, the flags in the landscape indicate that this is an alchemical image, with a blue … Continue reading →

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Lights on the Mud

Posted on February 25, 2011 by pearce

Adding a little Lead White to the patches of mud prepares them for another layer that will make the surface feel more solid. The little pebbles that I did first have all taken a glaze of Raw Sienna that makes … Continue reading →

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The World is Mud-luscious

Posted on February 22, 2011 by pearce

Working with paint in a loose and spontaneous way has resulted in this Raw Umber layer that will provide the structure for the mud surface of the land around the pool. It all looks a little dark now, but the … Continue reading →

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Depth

Posted on February 21, 2011 by pearce

I’ve posted two almost identical pictures today to show the difference a bit of subtle work makes to a painting – the first picture is the end result of this afternoon’s work, the second you already saw on Saturday evening. … Continue reading →

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Landscape Flag Cross

Posted on February 19, 2011 by pearce

At last I got a full day in the studio, getting a lot of painting done. It was so exciting to be able to develop ideas as the day passed, imagining new steps to take to drive the painting forward. … Continue reading →

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Red Pool Rising

Posted on February 19, 2011 by pearce

Turning the painting upside down was really great because it made it so much easier to paint the sky, which now is turning into a substantial and striking feature. I’ve flipped the photo to make it easier to see the … Continue reading →

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Flipped for a Sunset Sky

Posted on February 17, 2011 by pearce

I’ve finished painting the legs with the exception of the shoes, which I will do later. I’ve limited myself to simpler tasks today because I’m just too tired to do the more detailed work. It’s been a productive but mostly … Continue reading →

Posted in Magician, Making work | 2 Comments