The composition on the lower right is "Cinderella," 1880, by Valentine Cameron Princep (British, 1838-1904).
Learning by Sketching
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
Gericault's Prelims for 'Raft of the Medusa'
Gericault's famous painting Raft of the Medusa is a complex composition, with a lot of figures in dramatic poses. How did he get there?
His early sketches show the seed of the idea, with the figures in the group going in and out of shadow.
Another sketch shows the stricken mariner's making a more direct appeal to the rescuers.
Jean Louis Théodore Géricault (1791–1824), Study for The Raft of the Medusa (1819),
oil on canvas, 36 x 48 cm, Musée du Louvre, Paris.
As he brought the idea along to a painted sketch stage he worked out some of the key figures, such as the man caring for the dead or dying figure in the lower left.
Each figure needed careful study from models, and the ensemble had to work as a whole and parts.
Finally, this drawing appears to be a record of the finished painting, made after the fact.
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Read more online about the story the painting illustrates and how he developed the composition.
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
A Dinosaur-Eating Mammal
It's an extinct badger sized animal who raided dinosaur nests.
I also made a maquette out of an air-dry craft foam.
The finished painting of is fully documented in a Gumroad tutorial called "The Mammal That Ate Dinosaurs."
The illustration appeared in an article on paleo mammals in Scientific American.
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
Lebedev's Oil Study
Klavdy Lebedev (1852-1916) did this oil study from a costumed model as a preparation for a larger painting.
I'm just guessing, but he probably did study on an oil-primed surface, and that he must have done a preliminary pencil drawing and laid in the tones fairly thinly.
The Destruction of Novgorod was "an act of vengeance against the perceived treason of the local Orthodox church, the massacre quickly became possibly the most vicious in the brutal legacy of the oprichnina, with casualties in the tens of thousands and innumerable acts of extreme violent cruelty."
I'm just guessing, but he probably did study on an oil-primed surface, and that he must have done a preliminary pencil drawing and laid in the tones fairly thinly.
Lebedev was a member of the Itinerants, and a student of Perov.
Martha the Mayoress. Destruction of Novgorod by Ivan
by Klavdy Lebedev. 1889. Tretyakov Gallery.
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
More Etruscan Sketches
The sketches you saw yesterday are just the tip of the iceberg.
My job is to digest all the information and to explore lots of variations in visual terms.
Most National Geographic illustration assignments go through a months-long exploratory process, going back and forth with the art director, editor, writer, and scientific consultants.
My job is to digest all the information and to explore lots of variations in visual terms.
How can we incorporate the caption and text in the design? What tells the story most effectively? How can we communicate what's known and unknown?
Many archaeologists don't want to veer too far into speculation. But on the other hand, we want the reader to be fully transported back to the heyday of this mysterious ancient culture.
In the case of this tomb, big sections of the wall mural were lost or damaged, and the contents of the tomb were missing, so we studied evidence from other tombs to guess what the full picture must have looked like.
In the case of this tomb, big sections of the wall mural were lost or damaged, and the contents of the tomb were missing, so we studied evidence from other tombs to guess what the full picture must have looked like.
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Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
Gérôme Study of an Angel
Here's a pencil study by Jean Léon Gérôme (1824-1904) of a model with drapery .
The study is very carefully observed, but it's surely not a copy of what he saw. Instead he edited the forms to fit with his sense of flow and make it look right for an angel. Most academic studies were propelled by narrative choices away from literal truth.
He probably executed another study of the nude figure, and traced the hands, face, and feet from that study as a basis for this one.
The sketch was a gift to one of his students, illustrator André Castaigne.
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Books on Gerome
Jean-Leon Gerome
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
Walter Shirlaw's Studies
Walter Shirlaw (1838-1909) was a Scottish-born American, a painter, banknote engraver and teacher.
His painting "Toning the Bell" (1874, Chicago Art Institute) shows the foreman striking the bell with a hammer, while the violinist plays a reference note.
The faces, hands, and postures of the two main characters show that they have different personalities and that they come from different worlds.
This page of studies shows the construction of the violin, how the left hand needs to finger the strings, and a couple options for the bow hand.
It looks like he contemplated having the foundry man rest his left hand on the bell, and then changed his mind and brought the hand back into the shadow in front of his stomach.
This appears to be another quick study to figure out the pose of the violinist. Studies like these are just a step in the process, but a very necessary step.
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Walter Shirlaw on Wikipedia
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
Saul Tepper Thumbnail
Here's a thumbnail sketch by American illustrator Saul Tepper (1899-1987). This has all the qualities a good thumbnail should have:
1. Basic story situation reads immediately. Guy comes into a disordered room and sees woman on bed.
2. Simple tonal organization. She's light, he's dark. Coats on wall behind her frame the curve of her hip.
3. Basic acting through body language is strong. He seems shocked or angry, she seems sick or weak.
4. All other less important details are barely suggested and subordinated.
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Illustration Art blog has a great post about Tepper's thumbnail sketches.
A lot of people don't know that Saul Tepper was also a songwriter. Here's one of his tunes.
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
Emil Hünten's Preliminaries
Emil Johann Hünten (1827 - 1902) was a German military painter who studied in Paris and Düsseldorf.
2) Watercolor studies
and 3) Tone paper with pencil and gouache. He probably also used lay figures and maquettes.
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More about Emil Hünten on Wikipedia
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| Emil Hünten, Frederick the Great on horseback |
He produced his oil canvases only after careful preliminary study from life.
Those studies were typically made from costumed models in three different media: 1) Oil studies...
2) Watercolor studies
and 3) Tone paper with pencil and gouache. He probably also used lay figures and maquettes.
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More about Emil Hünten on Wikipedia
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
Studies for Dagnan Bouveret's "Breton Women at Pardon"
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Study and finish for Breton Women at a Pardon by Pascal Dagnan-Bouveret. |
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"Study for Women at a Pardon, 1887. Black ink, pencil, charcoal. Sketch for the two women on conversation to the far right." |
According to Wikipedia, "There are many known photographic studies and drawings both for the Breton series in general, and this work in particular. One photograph shows a grassy area in which the artist had a friend pose, another a view of the church seen here in the background, complete with the festival flags protruding from the lower spire."
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| Photograph of Dagnan at his easel while his wife poses in Breton costume. Taken in 1886 |
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| "Woman in Breton Costume Seated in a Meadow, c 1887, an oil on canvas study for the central outward looking figure." |
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| "1887 photographic study of the group, including the standing men" |
Previously:Dagnan's easel on rails
Using photo reference
Source: gurneyjourney.blogspot.com
