Detail, portrait of Andrea

Here is a detail from this painting.

I've been experimenting with an oil glazing technique, where the painting is done in several layers. First I lay down a loose underpainting with a fairly limited pallete. After it's dry I mix more linseed oil into my medium and paint a translucent layer over it, scumbling in some opaque lights where necessary. Then I wait for it to dry (which takes weeks!) and repeat, increasing the ratio of oil to solvent.
I think I put two or three layers of glazes on Andrea's portrait here. It's a time consuming way to paint. Basically the opposite working methodology of Alla Prima (which is a wonderful, useful book).

It's hard to capture in a reproduction of the painting, but the final result has a lovely sense of depth; you can see into the layers of paint and it has some of the translucency of real skin.


(click to enlarge)