In this part, we continue to paint a still life in oil in multilayer painting. I strongly recommend reading from the very beginning, that is, the previous two (1 part and 2 part). In them, we sorted out step by step how to draw an oil painting using glazing.

Such paintings are made for a long time, thought out, and sometimes very long. Why? We have to wait about two weeks between the dryings and return again and again to the same picture for a long time!

As one artist friend of mine told me: “So during this time I may just lose my inspiration and desire to paint this picture, and as a result it will be incomplete ...” Therefore, many artists choose fast writing techniques for their work so as not to lose interest and so that the spirit Art never left the artist’s workshop

I love both, believe me, each technique has its own charms! I decided to describe all the stages of work in multi-layer painting with a photo demonstration and share this with you, dear friends!

The long process in multi-layer technology scares many away, and most artists just don’t have the patience, because you want to see the result immediately and quickly. Needless to say, 21st century, we are all in a hurry and in a hurry, vanity, in a word ..

So, we begin the session after 1.5-2 weeks after drying the previous layer of a still life with wine. Before the beginning of the fifth stage, moisten the canvas with a medium, let it soak. In principle, the medium will have a sticky film on the surface of the canvas, which is what we need.

Materials - a palette of paints, brushes and the rest, we use the same as in the previous stage. Why is the interlayer treatment done with a medium, and not with oil, I wrote in 2 parts. You can use retouching varnish, because it exists for this.

We start working with a bottle of wine, prescribe a wine label with a thin brush. We devote as much time to this work as you have enough patience.

On the glass of the bottle we apply sap green paint with a thin layer. See how the look of the bottle has changed compared to the previous session!
If you look closely, then in the upper right corner on the bottle you can see a barely noticeable reflection of the grape leaf. It is so subtle that I almost missed it. Add it with yellow lemon paint. Now the background on the glass of the bottle is a little warmer, right?

We work with a sugar bowl (vase). I think it should be lightened a little more, using strongly diluted white. Thus, the pattern in Chinese painting on a vase becomes muffled. You probably thought, “Why combine it like that, because you could immediately make a vase lighter?” That's how it is, but it is glazing that make the painting more interesting, more voluminous and more colorful

The grape leaves, apply thin translucent layers, mixing grassy green and lemon yellow. If you apply lemon yellow to the same color, it will become louder, if to green, then the color of green will slightly change, it will become warmer. In the photo grape leaf comparison between steps

Grapes can be made richer by adding cadmium red to the brightest places. Getting to a glass of wine. We write with white on the glass, I have it slightly pinkish. To show the texture on the glass, it is necessary to slightly shade the picture of the glass, and then with white to emphasize the bright spots and highlights.

For the table top, apply a thin layer of green and yellow lemon. In bright places, add a little diluted white. For the bottom of the table we use brown Mars or burnt umber. I will say that when writing pictures, it is important to just feel the tone on the canvas.

I draw your attention to the fact that with such a painting, the paint consumption is much less than with alla prima for example!

I’m starting to work on the background, this is a separate topic! In the second part, I wrote that I would like to leave the background in warm brown shades. The whole picture in the original is, as it were, shrouded in gray haze. I’ll just make the tone a little darker in certain places, using the phthalo blue and Mars brown as before
Here, in the photo below, the comparative moment of the last session with the previous one. The changes are tangible, right?

That's all for now, it turned out to be a fairly short session, but the closer the end of the work, the less paints and time needed to complete it! Leave the canvas to dry for two weeks. In principle, this could stop.

But I will return to it one more time to lighten the vase, label and paint the glass. And I’ll probably leave the background in such a tonality, warm and welcoming. See how my free copy looks next to the original, after another 2 weeks. By the way, on the left next to the original picture, I translated another copy into warm shades, see how the picture can change dramatically!

Friends, a short summary of multi-layer painting

First stage - composition/underdrawing on the canvas and its fixation
Second stage - imprimatura
Third stage- determination of light and dark places, so to speak, Grisaille Fourth stage - color underpainting Fifth stage - the first glazing and shading
Sixth stage - new glazing, detail

I note that applying thin layers of glazing can be much larger. Everything will depend on the task in the picture. For the sake of justice, I’ll say that, for example, Leonardo da Vinci carried many of his paintings with him, so as not to stop working on them. And they sometimes lasted up to several years! The famous Mona Lisa was written for 20 years, and accompanied the painter wherever he was. In this picture, a lot of subtle glazing. Maybe this is the main secret of La Joconde?

Unfortunately, the photo camera does not transmit all the tint in the original, especially places with shading spots. The continuation of my story read in the third part

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