December 2017
Intermediate to advanced
208 pages
3h 39m
English
Underpainting is a technique that allows for the creation of greater depth and solidity in a painting. Although there are many variations, the most common procedure is to execute a monochrome version of an image, usually in a warm brown. Another popular option is simply to use black and white, a procedure known as grisaille. The underpainting may be worked until it is a fairly full account of the image and then allowed to dry. The artist will then build on top of it using glazes, semitransparent layers of paint, or stippled brushing so that the presence of the underpainting layer is at least partially visible through the succeeding layers. As the paint builds, the artist manipulates the color and interaction between the upper ...