Painting the Nude in Oils E-Book

Adele Wagstaff

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Geisteswissenschaft
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2015

Beschreibung

The nude has inspired artists for centuries and continues to inspire us today. Alongside a historical study of the nude in painting, this book introduces oil paint and gives advice on techniques when using this challenging and rewarding medium. Capturing the beauty of form and the delicate colours of the figure, it celebrates the powerful images that examine human relationships, personality and psychology. Some of the topics included in this book are instructions on materials, the colour palette and stretching your own canvas; the practicalities of working with a model in the studio; colour-mixing exercises that explore colour relationships and temperature, and finally step-by-step examples that demonstrate the progression of a painting.

Leseprobe

Painting the Nude in Oils

ADELE WAGSTAFF

THE CROWOOD PRESS

First published in 2015 byThe Crowood Press LtdRamsbury, MarlboroughWiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2015

© Adele Wagstaff 2015

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 906 3

Frontispiece: Monica kneeling

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank Paul Coleman, Beth Hopkins, Michael de Jacquier, Jean and Derek Wagstaff for all their help, support and encouragement throughout the writing of this book.

This book would not have been possible without all the models who have patiently sat for me hour after hour over the years. It is to them that I would like to dedicate this book.

I would particularly like to thank Lucy Castro, Brian Catlin, Beth Hopkins, Jane Flux, Helen Saunders, Alan, Ange, Jess, Kerry, Monica, Sonia and Yuki.

CONTENTS

1. The Nude – A Historical Perspective

2. The Studio and Materials

3. Understanding Colour

4. Lighting and the Nude

5. The Sustained Pose

6. The Naked Portrait

Bibliography

List of Art Suppliers

References

Index

CHAPTER 1

THE NUDE – A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Introduction

The nude within the context of western art and in particular within the tradition of European painting is now an accepted genre in its own right. Today, we are used to seeing images of the nude in painting from many different contexts and sources; from the art of the Ancient World to classical mythology, from biblical and historical painting to the nude becoming a subject of its own during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This continues to the present day as we see paintings of the figure, both clothed and unclothed within contemporary portraiture, images that examine human relationships, personality and psychology.

Drawing from a ‘fresco of lovers drinking,’ from Herculaneum.

As we begin our study of the nude in painting we will first look at how the portrayal of the nude has evolved throughout history. When did we begin to make representations of ourselves and for what purpose?

In this chapter we will look at how painting the figure has developed through the centuries, from the earliest images to contemporary art. In doing so we will examine how different cultures have influenced the ways in which the nude is represented today.

Although notable sculptural examples will be discussed with their relevance and influence on the representation of the nude in painting, this chapter will primarily focus on the history of the nude in painting and other two-dimensional art forms such as wall painting, fresco and vases where a two-dimensional image is painted onto a three-dimensional surface.

This chapter is in no way intended to be a complete historical survey that includes every period, ‘ism’ and artist as we progress through the centuries. Some artists and schools have been omitted while others will be discussed in depth. The history of the nude is immense and is particularly rich with images from the early Renaissance onwards so the examples that have been selected have been intentionally limited. Many of the examples will be recognized as some of the greatest masterpieces we have of ‘the nude’, whereas others selected will be less known or more unusual within this genre.

The earliest figurative art

When were the earliest works of art created and why were these artworks made?