I have not had the chance to post an image of this painting yet, so this one is a Holly Bianchi Fine Art Blog exclusive for the moment. In honor of Valentine's Day last week I painted this 5"x7" still life of strawberries and ice cream.
I made a short video showing my process. This painting a week was done differently from my previous ones, as I used a glazing technique, rather than my usual direct painting method. The result is a painting that has something of a stained glass effect in specific areas. This is a technique only achievable in oils.
From the first frame in the video, you see sepia-toned painting. This is an underpainting or grisaille [pronounced: gri-zahyz]. With the power of technology, I turned my reference photo into a black and white image and used only burnt umber and white oil paint to set the values of the painting. This took maybe a few hours and then it was left to dry.
Once this underlayer was dry (burnt umber dries very quickly, about a day) you then see me applying the reds to the strawberries and the background. The red pigments are mixed with a glazing medium (I use 50% linseed oil & 50% Gamsol) to lower their viscosity, thus making them more fluid. Then I add in the highlights using white, cadmium yellow, and cadmium red, and blend it all together. But I don't over-blend; the intention here is to have a cohesive painting that still retains a painterly feel.
More coats of red and blue glazes were added to the background of this painting, but I didn't record much of the completion of this piece. The layering of glazes is what creates the stained glass effect.
Pigments used:
Flake White Replacement
Cadmium Red Light
Cadmium Red Medium
Alizarin Crimson
Cadmium Yellow Medium
Permanent Green Light
Phthalo Blue
Burnt Umber
Questions about this process? Leave a comment below if you enjoy seeing content like this in my blog posts. Last month's post I also discussed my painting process, but in photo form. Do you like seeing videos of the process instead?
P.S. If you want a chance to vote on the next week's painting of the week, look for my poll on Instagram at the end of every week.
Dictionary
Glazing Technique: applying a transparent layer of paint over a dried layer of opaque paint
Direct Painting: method of painting used to create paintings in a single sitting. also known as alla prima, which translates to "at first attempt."
Grisaille: a monochromatic underpainting usually done in neutral grays.