Now we’re going from the sketch to the canvas. The perspective lines of the umbrella canopies and the flats holding the vegetables are established first. My goal is to get the umbrellas and large containers of flowers in first, they are the “Anchors” of the composition. We’re setting the stage for our chef. The drawing is done with a brush dipped in a very thin oil wash of MUD (Ultramarine Blue + Alizarin Crimson) + Liquin.
I’m giving the chef in my reference picture a shave! The young man we saw in Nice didn’t have a beard, so I’m going to wing it and make up his face. I’ve also decided to turn him a little bit from the reference photo and show his eye. You may click on the picture to see it larger.
Now for his reaching arm. The basic points of the anatomy: the ball of the Humerus bone (shoulder), as well as the Ulna (at elbow and wrist) are indicated. This helps me to get my proportions correct. AND…I just noticed, the ear of the chef is too high, will have to correct that!
The chef’s basket full of goodies is sketched along with the veggies filling the flats on the market table. Strawberries are washed in with a thin oil mix of Alizarin Crimson + Liquin.
The green stripes of the umbrellas are washed in with Viridian Green + Liquin, while Dioxazine Purple + Liquin is used for the Eggplant. I really like the way the sketch looks, maybe I should just leave it like this! HUGS,
Mikki Senkarik 
July 21, 2017 at 8:31 PM |
How much liquin do you mix into the paint when you are blocking in the painting?
July 24, 2017 at 6:09 PM |
Hi Karen,
Good Question. This is just an estimation but I probably put out about 2 teaspoons of Liquin on my palette. Then using the tip of my painting knife I’ll get a nickle sized amount of MUD and mix it into the Liquin. If I want a darker, thicker wash I’ll add more MUD. If I want the wash to be lighter I add more Liquin. Hope this is clear. I appreciate you following my blog. Happy Painting, Mikki