The Man in the Mirror Rembrant

I have not done a self portrait in quite awhile after watching this video I know it's time to do another one. I think one of the interesting things about Rembrandt's self portraits is the fact that his palette seem unchanged.

• Lead white
• Ochres
• Bone black
• Vermillion
• Siennas
• Raw umber
• Burnt umber
• Cassel earth

A modern version of Rembrandt’s palette should include yellow ocher, burnt sienna, burnt umber, white, black, and cadmium red deep.  Rembrandt was known for his complex mixtures rather than raw color 

Rembrandt created his distinctive portraits with a small palette of colors dominated by
dark earth tones and golden highlights and using a particularly thick consistency of oil colors and applying several layers of paint to the canvas. Over the years, the artist’s use of impasto in the light areas grew heavier and heavier, while the shadows became increasingly transparent.

Rembrandt was considered a master of chiaroscuro, an Italian term for a style using strong lights and heavy shadows to create depth in a painting and a center of interest. Rembrandt used it to emphasize the faces and hands in his portraits; their setting was less important.

Here are some steps to follow for a Rembrandt style portrait:

• Sketch the portrait on the canvas
• Block in the transparent shadows with a thin-mix (the only time ‘thin’ is used)
• Lightly brush warm brown hues of oil paint upon the canvas
• Apply skin tone
• Mix black and white into cool gray for mid-tones, between light and shadow
• Working fast, build-up contrast between heavy opaque lights and thin transparent shadows
• Start blending when paint becomes tacky and hard to move
• Allow the canvas to dry thoroughly
• For the second sitting, glaze the entire surface of the canvas with black
• Carefully remove paint from light areas using only a piece of cloth
• Use heavy impasto in the light areas but retain some of the glaze, creating a three-dimensional look and appearance

So show me your self portraits and I will post links to your blogs for other to view them. Paint on friends.


" POST YOUR OPINIONS IN THE COMMENTS" or email me at delilah@artbydelilah.com

Join Our Email List Email:

For Email Marketing you can trust

Pin It
Home Page Art by Delilah = http://www.delilah-smith.com