Exercise: Tonal Figure Study

My first thought on this was do paint the other seated pose I have already completed:

So, I then broke this down into simpler forms, concentrating on the tonal variations in the figure.

I think the head is a much better size on this one, but the forward leg is out of scale.  I decided at this point so use hard pastel on toned paper (black, dark brown, ochre, and white pastels).

While I felt the tonal variation worked well (plenty of contrast between light and shade areas), I began to think that the pose overall was too square and could be improved upon. 

So I moved the pose round slightly so it was more angled away, and created a stronger diagonal, as well as a more interesting outline (and therefore negative space).  The proportions are slightly out on this drawing, the limbs are OK but the torso is slightly too short.

Using a 6b pencil and 4b graphite I expanded this sketch into a full tonal drawing.  I think this pose is quite elegant, and the leg extending to the corner of the painting draws the eye up the body, with the raised thigh being foreshortened.  There are strong tonal contrasts in the drawing created by the folded shape of the body and shadow areas, as well as the dark hair against the face and the chest.  There is also reflected light on the inside thigh, outer calf and down the arm, some of which is created by the white fabric which is being sat on.

Being mindful of the instructions to make this a tonal study, I also wanted to paint it in realistic flesh tones as this is something I have not attempted previously.   Based on my own colour experiments, I decided to attempt two or three colour mixes to achieve accurate skin tones.

I began by mixing alizarin crimson and yellow ochre to make a strong burnt orange (2^nd column from left) which I then gradually lightened with white.   I felt this may be slightly too pink, so also did a graduated series by adding a little payne’s grey to the mix.

The second mix I created was using the three primaries (in my case cadmium red, lemon yellow and a hint of Prussian blue).  Again, I lightened these with white to create a tonal series.  Again, I felt some of the colours were a little too bright, so created a tonal range with payne’s grey which cooled the tones down considerably. 

Although all four tonal gradations could be used to depict skin tones, I decided to test the colours together as they would be in the painting, so I sketched a small area of the sketch which contained all the tonal variations.

I decided to try the 3 primaries mix by painting a small area of the figure.  The lighter tones worked very well, but I felt the darker tones were too orangey, so I then overpainted with the darker tones of the same mix with payne’s grey added.  I felt this worked much better, as many skin tones do have more of a blue tinge than brown.  I also tried using the cooler (payne’s grey) tones on their own, but found these very pale on their own, which does not reflect the warmth of the skin.

I prepared a mid-toned ground using one of my pre-mixed flesh tones (7 x tones) and then gridded the canvas to help me draw the form in.  I began by painting the main forms of the body, ignoring the hands, feet and face at this stage.  I applied the paint using a small flat brush, and then blended together with a soft brush to achieve a soft tonal gradation.

My next stage was to complete the hands and feet and add further depth to the shadows/more highilights.  At this stage I also corrected the right arm which was too thin.  At this stage, I also decided to add the white around the bottom of the figure (sitting on a folded sheet) and the dark tone around the figure.  At this stage, I realised that the folded leg was too thick – looks like it comes out from my waist! So, after leaving to dry, I then thinned this down.

Final stage, I added the facial features (not brilliant, but as this is a tonal figure study, I decided to leave as it is and not fuss too much) as well as carefully reviewing my figure to see where the tonal variation needed changing.  I also added more shadow detail and thickened the dark outside the figure.

At this stage, I decided not to paint in the background as I felt the dark/light around the form placed it sufficiently in a space, while concentrating totally on the figure, and clearly acknowledging it as a study of the human form.

Finished painting review:  I am pleased with this generally, the proportions are OK and it is clearly a solid figure with a complicated form.  I think my favourite areas of this painting is the area from the knee down the thigh on the left-hand leg.  Where the light is coming from slightly above (sitting on the floor), and sitting on a white sheet, the light has reflected from the inside of the thigh which I think I have captured well.

A few points are wrong/could have been better:

• hands – the hand wrapped around the leg is OK but I feel the other hand looks too small – probably just not curled the fingers enough here.
• colour – a bit too brown.  I think this is mainly because I painted over a toned background rather than the white I tested my colours on, so this is something to remember in future when colour sampling!
• the colour on the lower leg doesn’t seem to match the other colour on the body, which is strange because it is the same paint!!  However, I think what has happened is that the other areas were blended together while wet, while this area was repainted over dry paint, so the colour appears different.  Again, another thing to remember – perhaps to complete one “section” at a time to ensure colour consistency.
• few areas where the tone doesn’t blend as well (eg down side of left hand leg) – again this is overpainting when dry, so my comment as per the above holds for this too.
• a general point re gradated tones (in a small area, such as the face/hands) – I think I generally have too much paint on the brush, so when applying/blending, I end up spreading the colour too much so another lesson learnt!