Creating an Oil Painting

In mid-March I began working on this oil painting of a teenage Chicana holding a boy in her arms. It's a commissioned work that has the possiblity of being published. I wanted to share the step by step development of this most recent artwork with the readers of my web log.

My painting is on a 20” x 26” inch panel of gessoed masonite, a support I prefer because it's inexpensive and provides a rigid surface much like a wood panel. I prepared the masonite with several coats of acrylic gesso (covering the backside as well to prevent warping). When dried, I sanded the surface with fine sandpaper until I acquired the painting surface I wanted. You can make such a surface glassy smooth if you wish but I like a bit of texture on the painting ground. I then made my pencil sketch directly on the panel, the drawing acting as a rough guideline for the paint that followed. The next step was to mix a tiny amount of burnt sienna oil paint with lots of turpentine to create a highly transparent wash. Using a large sable brush I laid down multiple applications of the wash to give form and depth to the subject and to distribute the lights and darks of the composition. I then used a smaller sable brush to apply the wash in a more meticulous way... modeling the form and details of the faces.

The next step was to use a stiff bristle brush and oil paints directly from their tubes, using only a drop of turpentine as my medium. Using nothing but flake white, burnt sienna, sepia, and yellow ochre, I began to introduce the artwork's subdued color scheme. I envision no alteration of the painting's basic colors, just a deepening of the hues. As the painting progresses and I begin to introduce stand oil as my painting medium, the darks will become grow deeper and the boy's white shirt will stand out among all of the vibrant earth tones. I will of course post an update as the painting develops, but for now it's back to the easel. You can see a larger version of this work at my online portfolio, www.markvallen.com