Julie Donec

La Belle Ferronaire #2

Mix up the coloured ground which will be applied to the entire panel. I used raw umber, a bit of burnt umber, a small amount of cobalt blue, yellow ochre and naples yellow mixed with solvent. I then wiped it on the panel with a clean white cotton rag, taking care to wipe it down a little more on the areas which will be the face and neck, as these are the areas that will be lightest in the final image. Let dry. I'm now ready to transfer the image onto my board. Look at the early stages of the Vermeer and Mona Lisa for more details on how to transfer an image onto a panel. I transferred my image using a green chalk. If you zoom in to view the detail on this image, you'll notice traces of green chalk around the eyes, mouth, nose and lips. Now that the panel has been prepared, the coloured ground laid on and dried, and the image transferred, the painting can begin. Using roughly the same mix of colours/solvent to prepare the panel, I used a number 4 Bright to start blocking out my mass forms, keeping it at about a 6 on the grey scale (using a scale from 1 being the lightest to 11 being the darkest). The brush work can still be loose at this point, but take care to feather and eliminate all hard edges that will appear "sfumato" or very soft. These soft edges would specifically include areas such as the eyes,mouth,and nose. Leonardo put on many layers, blending carefully to render subtle and expressive forms. I'll continue to build the primary mass tones to the hair, face and the rest of the dress. I've only just begun, and will post the completed version as soon as I am done.