The secret to painting convincing and volumetric oil portraits is to understand the tonal aspects of our subject, and painting the cast in monochrome is probably the most effective method to achieve this skill.

Cast painting has been part of the foundation training in Art Academies for centuries to good reason: it is easy to measure a subject that is stylized and doesn’t move. The absence of color in the cast, or in this case the real sculpture of a Roman Emperor, makes it very easy to focus on the tonal range using only a gray scale. It is also easier to appreciate the positon and shapes of the facial features in a cast and to measure its proportions compared to a real the real life model.

In this two sessions oil painting course, the first of a series dedicated to portrait painting foundation in oil, we will practice measuring, proper position of the facial features, mixing a gray scale, developing an accurate monochromatic tonal range.

This first course will be followed by more foundation courses on this subject, where we will practice the various aspects of portrait painting in oil, such as color, temperature, chroma, color mixing, blending, color theory and more.

Materials:

• titanium white and zink white; ivory black (or any other black you might have)
• linseed oil or Liquin or Galkid; turpenoid or any other non-toxic solvent
• Filbert or flat brushes #2 ,#4, #8, synthetic or natural bristles
• A canvas or canvas board size about 10” by 14” or so