I use the “mud” leftover on my palette from the last painting to do the sketch and underpainting for the next one. Sometimes I will use white to make a value study out of it, other times I will try to introduce some very vibrant pinks and violets in with the mud. Nothing is ever very consistent with what I do for an underpainting though, if I do one at all.

An admission. On several occasions I’ve tried to emulate the Maxfield Parrish approach of painting an initial blue layer. It never really works for me.

The biggest problem is that I’m constantly changing the drawing/design. Can’t help it. There are always flaws I don’t see until too late, and I’m forever reworking everything. A writing teacher once said “Good writing is rewriting.” That’s true. For me, it is also true that good drawing is re-drawing and good painting is re-painting. It may be that the “Parrish” approach simply requires a much more confident draftsman.

The other problem with “beginning in blue” has to do with value. Basically, you’re not establishing lights and darks; you’re establishing lights and mid-tones. You always have to keep in mind the fact that subsequent layers will significantly darken the first layer. Thus, a mid-blue will end up as a near-black.

From an art historical perspective, the great mystery remains Leonardo da Vinci’s method. To judge from his two unfinished works — the St. Jerome and the Adoration of the Magi — his initial layers (in what looks like umber and sienna) could be very free. One might almost say that his brushwork was a bit sloppy.

Yet the final result was very tight, very delicate and perfect. The modelling of the skin tones is very subtle.

In the final painting, the paint film seems very thin. Not a hint of impasto. Everything seems transparently glazed, as one might expect from a Renaissance work.

Yet we don’t see the free brushstrokes of the initial layers, which means that he covered them an opaque layer at some point. The opaque layer must be very, very thin. But it’s still opaque.

That’s not something I can achieve with the flake whites available to me.

How did he do it? At a certain point, you just have to shrug and say “Magic.”

I just finished a landscape, 11×14, oil, with no underpainting. I did tone the canvas and did a relatively accurate charcoal drawing of the scene.

The second is 16×20, also oil on a toned canvas. I did a charcoal drawing on this canvas using a lot of measuring and adjusting. I went over the charcoal with burnt umber, then did a grisaille.
It’s been years since I’ve done a grisaille, so then I did some reviewing, and corrected that work because I realized I had gone way too dark. I went back and did a lot of repainting, lightening most of the grays considerably. Even so I missed a few.:confused: So I may adjust a few more areas before going on.
Re what JCannon said in post 4, “keep in mind the fact that subsequent layers will significantly darken the first layer. Thus, a mid-blue will end up as a near-black…” He’s right, and that should be emphasized. Emphasis mine.
I notice that on this piece that some areas seem to soak the oil in quickly, so on my next one, after gessoing the canvas, I may do two toned oil layers.

However, I almost always tone my canvases in burnt sienna

Thank you for giving me an idea of how to use all the burnt Sienna I’ve amassed.

Now, if you could just figure out what to do with all the Cadmium Red. … Oh yeah, tomatoes.

On a burnt sienna background.

No joke, If my tomato plants ever start growing again, I’m gonna be painting a lot of tomatoes.

Bill, why do you not use gray underpaintings for your portraits?

I know that it seems strange that I would use a grisaille for beginning my flowers, and still-lifes, but I use a full-color underpainting for portraits instead.

The only reason is that I sorta’ “bought in” to the progressive focus method that I have found so extremely useful for achieving an accurate likeness when painting portraits. And, that method begins with a very blurry, soft, full-color version of the subject. There is no other reason for my not using a grisaille underpainting for my portraits in oils.

At times I have considered modifying my progressive focus method to include a grisaille underpainting, but …..I have just not got around to it as yet.:)