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By Doug Purdon, SCA
The painting "Breaking Surf – Brenton Point" (demonstrated below) was selected for the
27th Annual – MODERN MARINE MASTERS EXHIBITION at the Maritime Gallery, Mystic CT.
More than 80 of the world’s most prominent maritime artists are represented in this
invitational show of work inspired by maritime subjects from yesterday and today.
The exhibition runs from April 29 – June 18, 2006 at the Maritime Gallery, Mystic
Seaport CT. http://www.mysticseaport.org/shop/so-gallery.cfm.
This demonstration will show you how I work on a sustained painting. If you
wish to see how I work alla prima, you can visit the "Tips & Techniques"
section of my website:
www.dougpurdon-artist.com.
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Inspiration for my studio paintings comes from plein air studies,
drawings and photographs, which have been done on sight.
Depending on the complexity of the subject, I sometimes do a
small oil study first. This painting will be a study for a
larger work.
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Ocean Point RI – Study of surf, Oct. 15, 2004
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Completed Blocking-in
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I first block in the painting loosely with Alkyd paint. Alkyd is
fast drying oil paint that will be dry enough for me to paint over
in 18 – 24 hours. I use it in the early stages of a painting
to speed things up. NEVER use alkyd on top of traditional oils
as serious technical problems can occur. Don’t get caught up
in details when blocking a painting in; only be concerned with
the large shapes and overall composition. There is plenty of
time to add details later. When the Alkyd block-in is dry I give
the canvas a thin stain of Raw Sienna Alkyd to tone the canvas.
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Once the stain is dry I start working on the under-painting. During
this stage paint is applied thinly, but I don’t use a lot of medium
or thinner at this point. I prefer to take advantage of the ability
of oils to be brushed out. This keeps this paint layer "lean".
I will be using more medium in the following layers. If oil paint
is over thinned it is difficult to work with and the colours lose
their brilliance.
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Halfway through the under-painting
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The sky and background water will be close to
completion when I finish this stage, but I keep the middle and
foreground areas darker. In some areas I am setting up colours
that will be enhanced by glazing later. Zinc white is used for
mixing colours in the foreground as it is more translucent and
has less strength than Titanium and will not overpower subtle
colours.
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The under-painting completed
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I add detail and adjust the colours and values that were established
during the under painting. To achieve the effect of light on the
spray, the whites in the rest of the painting are kept darker and
cooler. Titanium White is a cold white so I warm it up with a
small amount of Cadmium Yellow and Orange. When paint is dry
glazes of Alizarin Crimson, French Ultramarine Blue, Permanent
Sap Green and Perylene Black are applied to adjust colour and
value. I start to refine the patterns of foam in the foreground
and add highlights to the rocks.
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The painting partially finished
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As the painting progresses more layers of transparent, translucent
and opaque colours are added to the rocks, water and foam.
When the painting is finished it is signed and put away for a week
or so. Then I take a final look to see if there are any adjustments
needed and make any changes if required.
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Morning Surf – Brenton Point RI
Oil on canvas
12" x 16"
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One of the reasons I chose to do a study for the larger painting
was that I wanted to experiment with some of the new pigments that
have recently become available. Most of these new pigments are
very transparent and are excellent for glazing. Ten colours were
used in the initial stages of the painting. Two of these colours
however, Cadmium Yellow and Orange were only used to warm the
whites. In the early stages of a painting I try to limit the number
of colours used so as to avoid muddy mixtures.
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ALKYD COLOURS USED FOR BLOCKING IN:
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Winsor Blue
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Burnt Umber
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Ultramarine Blue
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BASIC PALETTE:
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Winsor Blue (Green Shade)
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Ultramarine Blue
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Burnt Umber
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Yellow Ochre
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Cadmium Yellow
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Cadmium Orange
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Prussian Blue
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Indigo
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Zinc White
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Titanium White
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As the painting drew near completion I started to glaze to
alter colour and value. Glazing selected areas allows you to
achieve the illusion of light coming from within the painting.
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ADDITIONAL OPAQUE COLOURS:
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Yellow Ochre
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Cobalt Turquoise
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COLOURS USED FOR GLAZING:
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Perylene Black
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Perylene Crimson
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Indian Yellow
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Permanent Sap Green
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Permanent Alizarin Crimson
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Winsor Violet
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