Diversion

self portrait, 20" x 16", oil on panel (in progress)

This is the start of a new painting - a self portrait. I've begun with a Venetian Red imprimatura on a white ground. The Venetian Red, which is essentially rust in linseed oil, was thinned using turpentine, painted thinly over the white ground panel, and then wiped off (that's the imprimatura). There are a few reasons for this, but most foremost it will give the painting a unifying warmth and provide a mid tone from which to begin drawing. This method is very Italian.

I think it looks a little dark, but I understand that a mid to dark tone was commonly used for paintings that intended to employ chiaroscuro, so I suppose it all works out. Chiaroscuro refers to the dramatic effect of light coming out of darkness (think Rembrandt). I was actually trying not to use too much turp in thinning the paint, because if the paint is thinned too much it's not structurally sound.