glazing study

I created the example above to illustrate the effect of layering color in indirect painting.  I began with horizontal strips of opaque paint, colors mixed with white to demonstrate the first color phase of the painting process.  This comes after the underpainting and consists of lighter colors and values than the final painting will contain and allows for later glazes.  After I let the horizontal color dry I began vertical strips of transparent color on top.  I let each layer dry before adding another transparent color.  As you can see there are three layers of transparent paint resulting in the darkest colors.  In between there are a myriad of other subtle colors varying in chroma, value and temperature.  It is possible to create the richest of colors when layering paint, and a luminous paint quality that is hard to capture in a photo.  The reds really glow, and the blues are deep, while the greens have sparkle and feel lively.

The horizontal strips are labelled and I used the following transparent colors on top vertically in different sequences:  Ultramarine blue, viridian, alizarin crimson permanent, indian yellow and burnt umber.