excerpt from Classic Portrait Painting in Oils by Chris Saper
excerpt from Classic Portrait Painting in Oils by Chris Saper excerpt from Classic Portrait Painting in Oils by Chris Saper
EXERCISEPainting the EyesFor many portrait painters, the eyes are not just the destination, butthe most fun part of the portrait’s journey—no doubt because theyare so frequently the focal point of the portrait. The infinite color andpattern variety in the human iris is truly beautiful, and the individualityof the muscles and tissues that surround the eye delivers tremendousexpression. In this exercise, my model is a young woman with deep-setblue eyes.Reference Photo1 Set Up the Basic Shapes2 Set the Irises and Paint the ScleraUse a small cat’s tongue brush and Raw Umber, thinned with a bitof medium, to lightly draw the structural shapes on a ground ofFlesh (light) and Flesh + Raw Umber (shadow). With a 7 ⁄8 viewpoint,where the head is angled to show very little of the far side of theface, be sure to draw the perspective of the distant eye—with theinner corner of the eye hidden behind the nose—which provides aclear view of the structure of its lower lid.With Raw Umber, paint the initial upper lash lines. Paint the lids’creases (any area where skin touches skin) very dark and very warmwith Asphaltum + Alizarin + Transparent Earth Red. Once youplace the initial lash lines, it’s easier to identify where to “hang” theiris. Here, the iris on our right hangs from the lashes at about 11:00and 2:00. Fill in the irises with the specialty color Indigo, whichworks well for blue eyes. Place the sclera (the white of the eyeball)with small strokes of Foundation Greenish and Raw Umber.Lighten the Indigo with Foundation Greenish to paint the irisinside the outer, darker blue rim. The darkest part of the iris willsit directly under the highlight’s location. Use your smallest cat’stongue brush to place Ivory Black ovals to represent the pupils.Indicate the tear duct’s shape with a small stroke of Flesh + RawUmber. Correct the values of the left and right parts of the sclera,letting the top of the whites of the eyes run a little darker to suggestthe shadow cast upon them by the upper lashes.50 Watch a free video lesson by Chris Saper at artistsnetwork.com/portrait-painting48-57_Y1754.indd 5010/12/11 11:49:35 AM
3 Place the HighlightsIt’s always better to understate rather than overstate highlights.There isn’t a brush tiny enough to paint the eye highlight properly,so experiment using the pushpin trick. Dip the point of a pushpin(or safety pin or other fine-point object) into your highlight color, inthis case, Flake White. The paint should form a soft peak extendingpast the point of the pin, similar to the peaks that are madewhen you whip cream or egg whites. Touch only the paint to theexact place of the highlight. You’ll need a mahlstick or your littlefinger to stabilize your hand for this step. If you accidentally makethe highlight too large or place it incorrectly, just start over fromthe previous step.4 Complete the Highlights and Adjust the LashesUse a small comb brush with Raw Umber and medium to drag a small counterclockwisestroke from the lash line over the sclera and lower lid. (If you still have enough wet paintfrom the lash line, you can just drag some of the paint already there.) Paint the ledge ofskin that holds the lower lashes using a stroke of Flesh.Add the highlights to the iris and lower lash line on the eye on the left. There’s often asmall highlight in the shapes that make up the tear duct, but it’s best to use Flesh insteadof Titanium White so it doesn’t become too prominent. Make any small adjustments to thelashes, but keep them smudgy and resist painting individual lashes.Visit artistsnetwork.com/portrait-painting for a free demonstration on painting a vignette5148-57_Y1754.indd 5110/12/11 11:49:48 AM
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EXERCISE<strong>Pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g</strong> the EyesFor many portrait pa<strong>in</strong>ters, the eyes are not just the dest<strong>in</strong>ation, butthe most fun part of the portrait’s journey—no doubt because theyare so frequently the focal po<strong>in</strong>t of the portrait. The <strong>in</strong>f<strong>in</strong>ite color andpattern variety <strong>in</strong> the human iris is truly beautiful, and the <strong>in</strong>dividualityof the muscles and tissues that surround the eye delivers tremendousexpression. In this exercise, my model is a young woman with deep-setblue eyes.Reference Photo1 Set Up the Basic Shapes2 Set the Irises and Pa<strong>in</strong>t the ScleraUse a small cat’s tongue brush and Raw Umber, th<strong>in</strong>ned with a bitof medium, to lightly draw the structural shapes on a ground ofFlesh (light) and Flesh + Raw Umber (shadow). With a 7 ⁄8 viewpo<strong>in</strong>t,where the head is angled to show very little of the far side of theface, be sure to draw the perspective of the distant eye—with the<strong>in</strong>ner corner of the eye hidden beh<strong>in</strong>d the nose—which provides aclear view of the structure of its lower lid.With Raw Umber, pa<strong>in</strong>t the <strong>in</strong>itial upper lash l<strong>in</strong>es. Pa<strong>in</strong>t the lids’creases (any area where sk<strong>in</strong> touches sk<strong>in</strong>) very dark and very warmwith Asphaltum + Alizar<strong>in</strong> + Transparent Earth Red. Once youplace the <strong>in</strong>itial lash l<strong>in</strong>es, it’s easier to identify where to “hang” theiris. Here, the iris on our right hangs <strong>from</strong> the lashes at about 11:00and 2:00. Fill <strong>in</strong> the irises with the specialty color Indigo, whichworks well for blue eyes. Place the sclera (the white of the eyeball)with small strokes of Foundation Greenish and Raw Umber.Lighten the Indigo with Foundation Greenish to pa<strong>in</strong>t the iris<strong>in</strong>side the outer, darker blue rim. The darkest part of the iris willsit directly under the highlight’s location. Use your smallest cat’stongue brush to place Ivory Black ovals to represent the pupils.Indicate the tear duct’s shape with a small stroke of Flesh + RawUmber. Correct the values of the left and right parts of the sclera,lett<strong>in</strong>g the top of the whites of the eyes run a little darker to suggestthe shadow cast upon them <strong>by</strong> the upper lashes.50 Watch a free video lesson <strong>by</strong> <strong>Chris</strong> <strong>Saper</strong> at artistsnetwork.com/portrait-pa<strong>in</strong>t<strong>in</strong>g48-57_Y1754.<strong>in</strong>dd 5010/12/11 11:49:35 AM
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