A toast…

This small glass study was undertaken with the idea of learning to deal with reflective surfaces and coloured glass and how the use of layers of paint and glazes can give a more sophisticated ‘old master’ feel to the work.

Colours used:
•Titanium white
•Burnt umber
•Ultramarine blue
•Mars black
•Burnt sienna
•Raw sienna
•Yellow ochre
•Cadmium yellow light
•Cadmium orange
•Hansa yellow light
•Permanent Alizarin Crimson
•Red iron oxide

Hansa Yellow light and Alizarin Crimson were only used mixed with a gloss acrylic glazing liquid as a final glaze in selected areas. I used the Hansa Yellow to glaze over the coloured glass and the Alizarin Crimson over the naartjie (or Satsuma for those non South Africans) and naartjie reflection to add to the rich warmth of the wood and the warm colours picked up from the naartjie in the reflection.

I have photographed the process of the layering of colour with my mobile phone which is why the image quality isn’t that fantastic, but the final result is taken with a decent camera!

1. Drawing out the image onto the canvas which has been prepared with a coloured ground (burnt umber and white)

blocking in the darker tones with burnt umber

Blocking in the even darker tones with black and starting to add the red oxide warmth to the naartjie

Developing the undertones of the coloured glass with yellow ochre

Building up the flesh of the naartjie and the reflection and following that through in the glass

Just slowly developing the shapes further with more layers of colour

starting to refine the actual drawing by blocking in the tones around it and just layering on more colour to get the more subtle shapes

Layering more colour on the coloured glass to develop the ellipse and the reflection as well as the smokey element to the glass especially around the pedestal area

Darkening the shadows around the naartjie and blending it in to the reflection on the warm reflective surface of the wood

Building up the texture on the flesh of the naartie and refining the highlighted areas around the ellipse and adding cool blues to the stem of the glass

I found it challenging overall, but the glass and it’s reflection I found the most difficult to deal with – a lot of hot chocolate breaks to try to get my head around the colour mixing and reflections…. Most important of all though, I had lots of fun!

And the final result after completing the background and adding the glazes….