My second watercolor portrait
 

The whole idea was how to transform a bad photo into a living person on the paper.

If it is successful then we can consider the art of the portrait as some kind of magic!

"Mon General", 40 x 30 cm, watercolor/paper. (This is not the whole picture, but a detail.)

The details:

The microscopic details, to see better the technique.

Attention! There was no black color here, but a mixture of ultramarine and burnt umber.

Sergio,

This is amazingly well done. As most artists know, watercolor is the most unruly of mediums. But you certainly know how to show watercolor who's boss! I love it. My guess is that you achieved this primarily through the use of multiple controlled glazes, allowing the painting to dry completely between layers. Am I right? I love the fidelity of your flesh tones, and what's more, I love the way the keen intelligence and unwavering confidence of "Mon General's" character shows through.

Like you, I've found that the use of black tube paint deadens any passage you're painting. As you've pointed out, mixtures of ultramarine blue and burnt umber produce any number of lovely, chromatic darks, and a very lively black. I'd love to see the complete image of this wonderful piece.

Thanks Thanks Thanks, There are not too much layers because as you know watercolor do not support more than 2 or three... in fact there is a very precise pencil drawing behind with some tonal analyses (that is a secret of the cold tones on the cheeks which gives the impression of a "just shaved face"). Then with the watercolor a very small but flat brush I erased the pencil by putting immediately the right tonality and color. Around 10 days of work.

Hi again, Sergio,

Everytime I look at "Mon Gereral", I like it more. I'm surprised however, to hear you say that watercolor only supports two or three layers or glazes. I have done watercolors with so many layers (glazes) that I have lost count. I know of many other watercolorists who work in a similiar manner, especially those desiring realistic renderings in bold, saturated color. I've not attempted a portrait in this manner as of yet, however, I do have a still life in progress in which I've employed this method. I will try to post it to illustrate what I mean, but my computer skills are still shaky at best.

Cynthia and Steven, please forgive me if it is forbidden to post any type of art other than a portrait. I would not otherwise do so, but I thought it might be acceptable to illustrate this one point.

Absolutely amazing! Still wondering how did you do that? Would be interesting to see the progression!

Sergio, I would love to see how a WC painting progresses - layer by layer. Perhaps you would consider doing a demo for this Forum?

Meanwhile, for what it is worth, when I did watercolors I was able to paint a lot of layers without disturbing the ones underneath by substituting (cheap) gin for water - because it dries so fast.

I'm not kidding.

Thanks Sergio.

I believe the paper you use has a great effect on the outcome of multi-layered techniques. In the above instance, I used Lana Watercolor paper, though the best paper for this technique would probably be Arches. Arches has a hard surface which is sized substantially, both internally and externally. It holds up well under multiple layering, and takes lifting and scrubbing techniques without the surface becoming abraded. That said, I really have a love affair with Lana. Its surface is quite a bit softer than Arches, but I feel that I have better control over my edges with Lana. Its surface is somewhat more delicate and does not take scrubbing as well as Arches, but I love the feel of it beneath my brush and the colors stay wonderfully alive on its surface. In both cases, I prefer the 140lb (300gm/m2) weight to the heavier papers.

The type of pigments used for glazing also seem to greatly effect the outcome. Some are easily disturbed once you go back over them with another pass. Manganese blue is probably the worst culprit in this regard because, besides being a chalky opaque pigment, it lifts immediately when you attempt to lay another color on top of it. Most straining pigments on the other hand---ones with Winsor, Thalo, or permanent in front of their names, layer like a dream. I did a lot of playing around with the various pigments to learn how they behave under different circumstances. Of course, watercolor can never be completely predictable, but there are a few general rules that seem to hold true most of the time.

Do you find that the type of brush you use effects the result of your glazes? I find that kolinsky sable brushes allow me to control the release of pigment to paper better than any other. I also use a very light touch when applying the paint so as to disturb the underlying layers as little as possible. It all just seems to take practice. You soon learn what works and what doesn't.

I've set this painting aside for a while to concentrate on protraiture. When I get back to it, I may e-mail you a WIP photo. Thanks for your interest, Sergio. It didn't occur to me to do so with the above work. I wish it had, as I definitely understand that SOG is dedicated to the art of the portrait. It looks totally out of place here. Again Cynthia, I apologize.

Oh, and I agree with Karen, Sergio. It would be wonderful to see a series of work-in-progress photos of one of your watercolor portraits. I would like to have seen the pencil drawing you made as the underpinning to "Mon General", as well as photos of the subsequent watercolor glazes. You prove without a doubt, that a good drawing makes a firm foundation for any great portrait.

Is it possible for you to show us the entire painting of "Mon Gereral"? I would surely love see it.

Hello Karin,

Thanks for your reply. Indeed I shall do a demo of my Aquarelle technique for the next work.

Meanwhile here is the preparatory drawing. The idea with Gin is not so bad ... will try it myself ... although using a Russian watercolor called "Leningrad", I'd better dilute it with Vodka! :)

Tell me honestly what was your feeling when you had got the first ASOPA prize!?

Friendly,
Sergio

Hello Valerie,

Thanks for your detailed answer. I shall try LANA too, although I do not remember if its surface is smooth or not.

Hard to talk about anything, I think, if you do not illustrate your words. Maybe you have a website?

Here is the full picture of the general (the drawing above) and the detail again, using 3H Derwent.

OK. I think that is it, but to repeat - I can hardly understand you without illustration.

Best regards,
Sergio

Here is the work after using the watercolor. As you can see the model, more precisely the "commanditaire" asked me to do some aesthetical operation (put away the grids under the left eye!)

I repeat again: I did not use several layers for that portrait! Only one "a la prima".

Concerning the brushes I use, Valerie, I use anything which is under my hands, knowing however, that once per year I go to the biggest French art store and buy everything I see without counting. This way I always have something new under my hands.

Hi Everyone,

I've deleted the above inappropriately posted image. I apologize for disrupting the focus of the forum and causing possible confusion.

Sergio, your drawing of the general is a thing of beauty, having the ability to stand alone as a finished piece. I am in awe! Few watercolorists that I know of (well actually, no other) execute such a complete drawing to serve as the underpainting to a watercolor. The drawing serves as a complete grisaille. Now I understand why it was unneccessary to use more than a few subsequent layers of paint. It works particularly well for depicting your military man.

I neglected to specify that I use the cold press (the British call it, "Not") paper surface when attempting the above mentioned multi-glazing technique. I wish I had an appropriate WIP to illustrate the method. I wish also, that I could take credit for a new and innovative watercolor technique, but alas, there are countless others out there who execute it far better than I. I'm sorry that I have not been able to state the concept very clearly, Sergio. As I said earlier, I'll soon be attempting to paint a portrait in this style. Perhaps I can post it here as a work-in-progress, with a detailed explaination for each step.

By the way, Sergio, in the ordinary Virginia town where I come from, the idea of a french firefighter who also happens to be an incredible artist, is a pretty exotic idea. It certainly has captured my imagination. Please, if you would, answer this question: Which thing has your heart most strongly, fire fighting or painting?

Nice Portrait!
 

Sergio,

Your portraits have been wonderful! I especially love this last posting, "Mon General'. Nice, detail work.

When you create your undertone with the pencil, do you spray it with fixative before you add the watercolour?

Disbelief.

As to using Gin instead of water...I really think that Vodka might be a better idea...it smells less.

Howdee Sergio,

Congratulations on a marvelous job here, Sergio. Not only is it rendered beautifully, but he really comes across as an intruiging individual with character.

Sumptuous.

Linda

Hello Melissa,

I did not fix the drawing because the idea was to use the watercolor as an "stumpage" technique, to erase the pencil with your brush and water. The drawing is present only as a tonal reference which disappears during the work.

B.R. Sergio

P.S. Look at the third page in this section to see the progression of my work from the photo to the drawing and painting please!

Hello Valerie,

I did not get the idea of "cold press paper" -- is it a kind of "bristol" with a soft surface or do you pass the paper under press yourself?

Also why did you take away that great watercolor? Even if it is not a portrait we are discussing the technique so any illustrations of it are helpful, I think.

Concerning my firefighting: I consider FIRE as a mystical entity, a kind of "zarathustrian" God, which takes form in many things like "passion", "love", painting" or "firefighting". In fact I cannot make the difference between the two activities: one of them is saving people's "body" the other one is saving their "soul".

Friendly Regards! Sergio. Thanks for your replies and post some of your works for discussion too!

P.S. Look at the third page in this section to see the progression of my work from the photo to the drawing and painting please!

Hello Linda,

Thanks for the positive reply: the idea in this portrait was to fulfill a command but at the same time illustrate an idea which people usually say, "the painting is so real as if he would be alive".

This concept was even more important to me because of the original photo which was of an awful quality done by a non professional. Unfortunately I cannot display it entirely so here is only a piece. That idea of "as alive", a kind of "magic" feeling when you look at it, is really present when you see the picture in reality. Here on the screen it is lost.

P.S. Look at the third page in this section to see the progression of my work from the photo to the drawing and painting please!

Sorry everybody,

I used some malfunction in the program so erased all the drawing, so I restart everything from the beginning:

1. the photo
2. the drawing
3. the watercolor

2. the drawing

...and here is a bad photo of the painting.

Hi Sergio,

Cold Press simply refers to the amount of texture on the surface of the paper. Hot Press paper is very smooth, almost like plate surfaced bristol board. Rough Press is a very "toothy" paper, with lots of texture. Cold Press is somewhere in between. It is not smooth or rough (This is why the British call it "Not" paper).

Most brands of watercolor paper are available in either of these three surfaces. Cold Press watercolor paper is the most popular of the three surfaces among watercolorists (at least here in the United States).

Sergio, I have to agree that there's a somewhat mythical quality to fire. I've read accounts of other firefighters' experiences fighting large fires. They speak of fire as an almost conscious being, capable of deliberate action. The sounds made by fire in a structure are like those of an animal, a fearsome beast. Firefighters are like modern day dragon slayers.

Your comparison betwen Making Art and Fighting Fires is intriguing and, I think, very true! Art can be just like fire: It can be a destructive force, damaging both heart and mind, or it can be a healing balm.

As far as the decision to delete my still life, I think it was probably best. The Moderators on the site make every effort to keep the threads "on subject" here at SOG. This thread is about your portrait, "Mon General". The still life of my apples looked out of place, even though it was used to illustrate my explanation of "multiple glazes".