The Painter in Oil Bouguereau Pupil

7/29/2019 The Painter in Oil Bouguereau Pupil

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CHAPTER II: CANVASES AND PANELS

You should have plenty of canvas on hand, and it would be well if you had it all stretched ready touse.

Many a good days work is lost because of the time wasted in getting a canvas ready. It is notnecessary to have many

kinds or sizes. It is better in fact to settle on one kind of surface which suitsyou, and to have a fewpractical sizes of stretchers which will pack together well, and work always onthese. You will find that bygetting accustomed to these sizes you work more freely on them. You can pack them better, and you can frame them more

conveniently, because one frame will always do formany pictures. Perhaps there is no one piece of advice which Ican give you which will be of more practical use outside of the principles of painting, than this of keeping

to a few well-chosen sizes of canvas, and the keeping of a number of each always on hand.It is all well enough to talk about not showing ones work too soon. But we all do, and

alwayswill like to see our work under as favorable condition as possible. And a good frame

is one of the favorable conditions. But good frames are expensive, and it is a greatadvantage to beable to have a frame always at hand which you can see your work in from

time to time; and if you only work on four sizes of canvas, say, then four frames, one for

each size, will suit allyour pictures and sketches. Use the same sizes for all kinds of worktoo, and the freedom willcome, as I say, in the working on those sizes.Dont have odd sizes

about. You can just as well as not use regular sizes and proportionswhich colormen keep instock, and there is an advantage in being able to get a canvas atshort notice, and it will be

one of your own sizes, and will fit your frame. All artists havegone through the experienceof eliminating odd sizes from their stock, and it is one of thepractical things that we all

have to come down to sooner or later, and the sooner the better, -to have sizes which wefind we like best, not too many, and stick to them. I would have youtake advantage of this,

and decide early in your work, and so get rid of one source of bother.Rough and Smooth

.-The best canvas is of linen. Cotton is used for sketching canvas.But you would do well

always to use good grounds to work on. You can never tell beforehandhow your work willturn out; and if you should want to keep your work, or find it worthwhile to go on with it,

you would be glad that you had begun it on a good linen canvas. Thelinen is stronger andfirmer, and when it has a grain, the grain is better.

G r a i n

.-

The question of grain is not easy to speak about without the canvas, yet it is oftena matterof importance. There are many kinds of surface, from the most smooth to the mostrugged.

Some grain it is well the canvas should have; too great smoothness will tend to makethe

pa in ti ng s li ck , which is no t a pl easant qual it y. A grain gives the canvas a t oo th ,andtakes the paint better. Just what grain is best depends on the work. If you are going to

havevery fine detail in the picture use a smoothish canvas; but whenever you are going topa in theavi ly, roughly, or loosel y, the rough canvas takes the pa int be tt er . The grai n of the

canvastakes up the paint, helps to hold it, and to disguise, in a way, the body of it. For

largepictures, too, the canvas must necessarily be strong, and the mere weight of the fabricwillgive it a rough surface.

5K n o t s

. -For ordinary work do not be afraid of a canvas which has some irregularities andknots on

it. If they are not too marked they will not be unpleasantly noticeable in the picture,andmay even give a relief to too great evenness.

T w i l l e d C a n v a s

.-

The diagonal twill which some canvases have has always been afavorite surface with

pa in te rs , pa rt icu la rl y the po rt ra it pa in te rs .The grain is a sympat he ti c one to work on , ta kes

pa in t well , and is no t in any wayobj ec ti onable in the fini shed pi cture.T h e B e s t

. -

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The best way is to try several kinds, and when you find one which has asympathetic

working quality, and which has a good effect in the finished picture, note thequality anduse it. You will find such a canvas among both the rough and smooth kinds, andso you can

use either, as the character of your work suggests. It is well to have both roughan ds m oo t h r e a dy a t ha nd .

A b s o r ben t

. -Some canvases are primed so as to absorb the oil during the process of painting. They arevery useful for some kinds of work, and many painters choose them; butunless you have

some experience with the working of them, they are apt to add anothersource of perplexityto the difficulties of painting, so you had better not experiment withthem, but use the

regular non-absorbent kinds.O l d a n d N e w

. -The canvas you work on should not be too freshly primed. The paintingis likely to crack if

the priming is not well dried. You cannot always be sure that the canvasyou get at stores isold, so you have an additional reason for getting a good stock and keepingit on hand. Then,

if you have had it in your own possession a long while, you would know if it is a year old.

Grounds

. -The color of the grounds should be of interest to you. Canvases are preparedfor the market

usually in three colors, - a sort of cool gray, a warm light ochrish yellow, and acoolpi nk ish gray. Which is best is a matt er of pe rsonal li king , it woul d be well to cons iderwhat

the effect of the ground will be on the future condition of the picture when the colorsbeginto effect each other, as they inevitably will sooner or later.Vibert in his

L a S c i e n c e d e l a P e i n t u r e

advocates a white ground. He says that as thecolor will be sure to darken somewhat

with time, it is well that the ground should have aslittle to do with it as possible. If theground is white there is so much the less dark pigment toinfluence your painting. He is

right in this; but white is a most unsympathetic color to work over, and if you do not wantto lay in your work with

frottes

, a tint is pleasanter. For mostwork the light ochrish ground will be found best; but youmay be helped in deciding by thegeneral tone of your picture. If the picture is to be brightand lively, use a light canvas, and if it is to be sombre, use a dark one. Remember, too, that

the color of your ground willinfluence the appearance of every touch of paint you put on itby cont rast , un ti l the pr iming is covere d and ou t o f s i gh t .

Stretchers

. -The keyed stretcher, with wedges to force the corners open and so tightenthe canvas when

necessary, is t he only proper one to use. For convenience of use many kindshave been

invented, but you will find the one here illustrated the best for general purposes.The sidesmay be used for ends, and vice versa. If you arrange your sizes well, you will havethe sides

of one size the right length for then ends of another. Then you need fewer sizes, andtheyare surer to pack evenly.

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Stretching

. -You will often have to stretch your own canvases, so you should know how to doit. There is only one way to make the

canvas lay smoothly without wrinkles: Cut the canvas abouttwo inches longer and wider than the stretcher, so thatit will easily turn down over the edges.Begin by putting in

one tackto hold the

middleof one end. Then turn the whole thing round,and stretch tightly lengthwise, and put a tack to hold it

into themiddle

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of the other end. Do thesame way with two sides. Only four tacks so far, which have stretched the canvas in the

middletwo ways. As you do this, you must see that the canvas is on square. Dont drive the tacks alltheway in at first till you know that this is so. Then give each another blow, so that the head binds thecanvas more than the

body of the tack does; for the pull of the canvas against the side of the tack will tear, while the head will holdmore strands. The first two ways stretching must be as tight asany after stretching will be or you will have wrinkles

in the middle, while the purpose is to pullout the wrinkles towards the corners. Now go back to the ends: stretch, and

place one tack eachside of the first one. In a large canvas you may put two each side, but not more, and youmust besure that the strain is even on both sides. Dont pull too much; for next you must do the samewiththe other end which should bear

halfof the whole stretch. Do just the same now with the two sides.Now continue stretching and tacking, - each side of

the middle tacks on each end, then on eachside, then to the ends again, and so gradually working towards thecorners, when as you put in thelast tacks the wrinkles will disappear, if you have done your work well. Dont hurry and

try todrive too many tacks into a side at a time, for to have to do it all over again would take more timethan to have workedslowly and done it properly. You may of course stretch a small canvas withyour hands, but it will make your fingers

sore, and you cannot get large canvases tight withouthelp. You will do well to have a pair of canvas pliers whichare specially shaped to pull thecanvas and hold it strongly without tearing it, as other pliers are sure to do.When

you take canvases outdoors to work, you will find it useful to strap two together, faceinwards, with a double-pointed tack like

this in each corner to keep them apart. You will not haveany trouble with the fresh paint, as each canvas will then protect the

other. You can pack freshlypainted canvases for shipping in the same way.

Panels

. -

For small pictures panels are very useful, and when great detail is desirable, and fine,smooth work wouldmake an accidental tear impossible to mend well, they are most valuable.They are made of mahogany and oak

generally.Panels are useful, too, for sketching, as you can easily pack them. They are light, and the sundoesnot shine through the backs. You can get them for about the same cost as canvas for smallsizes, which are what

you would be likely to use, and they are often more convenient, particularlyfor use in the sketch-box

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APTER III: EASELS

The important thing in an easel is that it should be steady and firm; that it shouldhold the canvas without trembling; and sothat it will not fall as you paint outtowards the edges. You often paint with a heavy hand, and you must not have tohold on to your picturewith one hand and paint with the other. Nothing is moreannoying than a poor easel, and nothing will give you more solid

satisfaction, thanthe result of a little generosity in paying for a good one. The ideal thing for thestudio is, of course, thegreat screw easel, which is heavy, safe, convenient, andexpensive. We would like to have one, but we cant afford it, so we wont speak

of it. The next best thing is an ordinary easel which doesnt cost a great deal, but which is firm and solid and practical.

Dont get one of various three-legged folding easels which cost about seventy-five cents or a dollar. They tumble downtoo oftenand too easily. The wear and tear on the temper they cause is more than they are worth. It is true that they fold up

out of the way. But they fold up when you dontexpect them to; and you ought to be able to afford room enough for an

easelanyway, if you paint at all.The illustration shows one of the firmest of the inexpensive easels, and one which will fold upinto as small

a compass as any practical easel will. It will hold perfectly well as good-sized canvas,even with its frame, and will nottumble over on slight provocation.Another good easel is shown on p. 17. It is more lightly made, not so

well braced, but is moreconvenient for raising and lowering the picture, as the catch allows the thing to be raisedandlowered at once.If you are to save money on your easel, dont save on the construction and strength of it,

buton the finish. Let the polish and varnish go, but get a well-made easel with solid wood. Theheavier it is,the less easily it packs away, to be sure, but the more steadily it will hold your picture.

Sketching Easels

. -The same things are of importance in an easel for out-of-door work that are needed in a studio easel,

except that it must also be portable. So if you must have afolding easel, get agood

sketching easel; or if you cant have one for in-doors and one for out-doors, then pay a good price for asketching easel, and use it in doors and out also. There are twothings which are absolutely essential in

a sketching easel. Itmust

have legs which may be madelonger and shorter, and it

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must hold

the canvas firmly. It is not enough to lean the canvas on it.The wind blows it over just when you are putting onan interesting touch, or the touch itself upsets it, either of which is most aggravating, and does not tend to satisfactory

work. You must beobliged to sit down to work just where you dont want to, a little this side or a little thatside of thechosen spot, because the ground isnt even there and the easel will not stand straight. You must beable to make

a leg longer or shorter as the unevenness of the ground necessitates. It is impossibleto work among rocks

or on hillsides if you cannot make your easel stand as you want it.9

These things are not to be got round. You might as well not work as to sketch with a poorsketching easel. And you mustpay a good price for it. The sketching easel that is good foranything has never been made to sell for a dollar and a

half. Pay three or four dollars for it, at anyrate, and use it the rest of your life.I use an easel every day that I haveworked on every summer for twelve years. Most artists aredoing much the same. The easel is not expensive per

year at that rate! It is such an easel as thatshown on the opposite page, and is satisfactory for all sorts of work.Ifyou are working in a strong wind, or if you have a large canvas, such an easel as this illustrationshows it

is the best and safest yet invented, and it is as good for other work, and particularly whenyou stand up.And either of these easels will be perfectly satisfactory to use in the house

11The only sables which are in any degree indispensable are the smaller sizes of riggers.

Theseare thin, long brushes which are useful for outlining, and all sorts of fine, sharp

touches. Youuse them to go over a drawing with paint in laying in a picture, and forbr anches , twigs , etc. As thei r name impl ies, you must have them for the rigging of vessel s

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in marine painting also.The three sizes shown in the cut on the opposite page are those you

should have, and if youget two of each, you will find them useful in all sorts of places.When you buy them, see thatthey are elastic and firm that they come naturally and easily to

a good point, without anyscraggy hairs. Test them by moistening them, and then pressingthe point on the thumb-nail.They should bend evenly through the whole length of hair.

Reject any, which seem weak inthe back. If it lays flat toward the point and bends all in

one place near the ferrule, it is apoo r br us h. These three larger and thicker sizes come invery useful often and it would be well if youwere to have these too. Sometimes a thick,long sable brush will serve better than another forheavy lines, etc.All these brushes are

round. One largish flat sable like this it would be well to have; but theseare all the sablesnecessary.

Bristle Brushes

. -

The sable brush or pencil is often necessary; but oil painting ispractically always done withthe bristle, or hog hair, brush. These are the ones which willmake up the variety of kinds

in your six dozen. A good bristle brush is not to be boughtmerely by taking the first, whichcomes to hand. Good brushes have very definite qualities,and you have no trouble in

pi ck ing them ou t. Neverthe less, you wi ll take the troubl e to se le ct them, if you ca re to have

any satisfaction in using them.

The Bristle. -

You want your brush to be made of the h air just as it grew on the hog. Allhair, in itsnatural state, has what is called the flag. That is the fine, smooth taper towardsthe

natural end of it, and generally the division into two parts. This gives the bristle, nomatterhow thick it may be, a silky fineness towards the end; and when this part only of thebristle

is used in the brush, you will have all the firmness and elasticity of the bristle, andalso adelicacy and smoothness and softness quite equal to a sable. But this, in the short hairof an

artists brush, wastes all the rest of the length of the hair; for it is only by cutting offtheflag, and using that, which is only an inch or so long, that you can make the brush.

Yet thebristle may be several inches long, and all this is sacrificed for that little inch offlag.Naturally the flag is expensive, and naturally also the manufacturer uses the rest

of the hairfor in fe ri or br us he s. These latter you should avoid. These inferior brushes are

made from the part of the bristleremaining, by the sandpapering, or otherwise making theends fine again after they are cutoff. But it is impossible to make a brush which has theright

quality in this way.

S e l e c t i o n

. -Never buy a brush withou t te st ing it s evenness , as has been advi sed in thecare of sabl es .

Feel carefully the end of the bristles also, and see that the flag is there. Allbrushes are

kept together for packing by paste in the bristles. See that this is soaked off be fo re yo ut e s t you r b r u s h .

Ro und or Fl at

. -

It will make little difference whether you use round or flat brushes, theflat brush is mostcommonly preferred now, and most brushes are made that way. So you hadbetter get that

kind, unless you have some special reason for preferring the round ones.

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Hand le s

. -

Whether the handles are nicely polished, also, is of no importance. What youare to look tois quality of the bristles and of t he making; the best brushes are likely to benicely finished

all over. But if you do find a really good brush which is cheaper because of the plainhandle, and you wish to save money, do it by buying the plain-handled one.

S i z e s a n d S h a p e s

. -

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You will need some quite large brushes and some smaller ones, somesquare ones and some

po in ted .Here are th ree round brushes which, fo r al l so rt s of pa in ti ng , will be of ve rygeneral utility.For most of your brushes select the long and thin, rather than the short and

thick ones. Thestubby brush is a useless the sort of thing for most work. There are menwho use them andlike them, but most painters prefer the more flexible and springy brush, if

it is not weak. So,too, the b rush should not be too thick. A thick brush takes up too much

pa in t in to it se lf, anddoes no t change it s ti nt so read il y. For rubbing over large surfaceswhere a good deal of thesame co lor is t hick ly sprea d o n t he c anva s , t he t hick ,str ong bru sh is a ver y pro per to ol . But where there is to be any delicacy of tone, it is

too clumsy; you want a more delicateinstrument. The same proportions hold with l arge andsmall brushes, so these remarks applyto all.

Flat brushes

. -

This is particularly applicable to the flat brushes, and the more thatmost of your brusheswill be flat.You should have both broad-ended and pointed brushes among your flat ones.

For broadsurfaces, such as backgrounds and skies, the broad ends come in well; and for thesmall onesthere are many square touches where they are useful. The most practical sizes

are thoseshown on page 28. But you will often need much larger brushes to the largest of

these.For the smaller brushes you will have to be very careful in your selections. For only

thes i lk ies t o f b r i s t l e w i l l do good work in a ve ry smal l b rush , and then thete mp ta ti on is to us e asable, which should be resisted. Why you should avoid using the

sable as a rule is that it willmake the painting too slick and edgy. There is a loosenessthat is the quality to prize. Allthe hardness, flatness and rigidity that are desirable you can

get with the brist le brush. Whenyou work too much with sabl es , the over worki ngb r i ngs a wax y wooden y s u r f a ce , wh i ch i s against al l the qual it ie s of at mosphere and

luminosity, and of freshness and freedom of touch.Some of the most useful sizes o f themore pointed brushes are shown on opposite page.There are, of course, sizes between

these, and many larger; but these are what you will findthe best. It would be better to havemore of these sizes than to have more sizes. You shouldtry to work with fewer rather than

more sizes, and as a rule, work more with the larger thanwith the smaller brush, even forfine work. You will work with more force and tend less topettiness, if you learn to put in

small touches with the largest brush that will do it. Breadth isnot painting with a large

brush; bu t the man who works always with smal l brush in st inct ivelylooks for the th ingssmall brushes are adapted to, and will drift into a little way of working.The fan brush, suchas here illustrated, is a useful brush, not to paint with, but to flick or drag across an outline

or other part of a painting when it is getting too hard and liney. Youmay not want it once amonth, but it is very useful when you do want it.

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Care of Brushes.

-The best of economy in brushes lies in your care of them. You shouldnever let the paint dry on them nor go too long

without careful washing. It is not necessary towash them every day with soap and water, but they would be the betterfor such treatment.Quite often, once a week, say, you should wash your brushes carefully with soap. You may usewarm

water, but dont have it hot, as that may melt the glue which holds the bristles together inthe ferrule. Use strong soapwith plenty of lye in it - common bar soap, or better, the old-fashionedsoft soap. Hold several brushes

together in one hand so that the tips are all of a length, dip themtogether into or rub them onto the soap,and rub them briskly in the palm of the other hand. Whenthe paint is well worked into the lather, do the same with

the other brushes, letting the first onessoak in the soap, but not in the water. Then rinse them, and careful workthem clean one by one,with the fingers. When you lay them aside to dry, see that the bristles are all straight and

smooth,and they will be in perfect condition for next painting.Cleaning

. -But from day to day you need not take quite so much trouble as this. True, thebrushes will keep in better condition if washed

in soap and water every day, but it is not alwaysconvenient to do this. You may then use the brush-cleaner. This is a tin boxwith a false bottom of perforated tin or of wire netting about half-way down, which allows the liquid to stand

a half-inchor so above it; so that when you put your brush in and rub it around, the paint is rinsed fromit,and settles through the perforations to the bottom, leaving the liquid clear again above it. If youuse this carefully, cleaning

one brush at a time, not rubbing it too hard, and pulling the hairsstraight by wiping them on a clean rag, you may keep your

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brushes in good condition quite easily.But they will need a careful soap-and-water washing every little while,

beside. The liquid best foruse in this cleaner is the common kerosene or coal oil. Never use turpentine torinse your brushes.It will make them brittle and harsh; but the kerosene will remove all the paint and will not affectthe

brush.RED SABLE RED SABLE ROUND

28Varnishes. -When the picture is done, varnishes are used to bring out the freshnessof color, and to preservethe surface from outside influences of all sorts. A picture mustbe well dried before it isvarnished, or it is likely to crack; six months is not too long to besafe. If you are in a hurry tovarnish, use a temporary or retouching varnish.The best varnish is necessary for use on pictures.Never used any except a varnishespecially made for the purpose by a reliable colorman. Thosemade by Winsor andNewton may be all depended upon. Pay a good price for it, and dont usetoo much.Mastic varnish is that which is most favorably known. Be sure you get a good andpurequality.Varnishes are made from various gums or resins dissolved in a solvent such asalcohol,turpentine, or oil, as the case may be. The latter gums are the best for pictures,becausethey do not affect the color of the picture. Much care should be used in putting on the varnish - thatit is even and as thinly distributed as will serve the purpose. It should notbe flowed on, butcarefully worked out with a clean brush, and then kept from dirt anddust until dry.The finervarnishes in oil or turpentine are best for ordinary use. Those in alcohol donot hold theirfreshness so well.Varnishes are sometimes used as siccatives, and to mix with colors whichare liable toaffect other colors, but to lack consistency. Usually, however, they are not needed.

29CHAPTER VII: PALETTESThe most important qualities in a palette are that it should be largeenough, and that it should balance well on the thumb.Whether it isround or square is a slight matter. The oval palette is usually best for thestudio because the corners are seldom of use, and add

weight. But forsketching, square palette fits the box best.Get a palette much larger than you think you want. When you get it on your thumb themixing-surface is much less than there seem to be before it was set, for all the actualsurface is betweenthe row of colors and the thumb. If the palette is polished it is notessentially better; it is easier tokeep clean, as far as looks go, but no greater real service.If the choice is between a larger

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unpolished and a smaller polish when, the price beingthe consideration, get the larger one.Get alight wood in preference to a dark wood for a choice of color, but not if there isbetter grain or lighterweight in the darker palette. It is an assistance in painting not tohave to compare the tint you are mixingwith too dark a surface, for the color lookslighter than it is; so the light wood will help you tojudge justly of the color while thepalette is new. When it has been worked on a while it will cometo have a sympatheticcolor anyway. This bears on the cleanliness of your palette. It is a mistake

to considerthat cleanliness demands that the palette should be cleaned to the woodand polishedafter every painting. On the contrary, if a little of the paint is rubbed out over the paletteeverytime it is clean, after a few weeks there will come a fine smooth polish of paint,which will have adelicate light gray color, which is a most friendly mixing surface.Adapting. -When you get a new palette, before you use it take a little trouble to carveout the thumb-hole tofit your thumb. Make it large enough to go over the ball of thethumb, and set easily on the top ofthe hand. When the whole is too small the thumb getsnumb after working a little while, whichthis will obviate. your palette nicely, you will not only take up more time with your palette thanyou dowith your painting, but the fact that some left-over paint may be wasted will makeyou alittle stingy in putting on fresh paint, which is one of the worst habits a beginner can fallinto. You cannotpaint well unless you have paint enough on your palette to use freely when you need it. It is all wellenough to put on more, but nothing is more vexing than tohave to squeeze out new paint at almost every

brushful. You must have paint enoughwhen you begin, to work with, or you waste too much timewith these details.If you are painting every day, leave the good paint where it is at the end ofyour work,and scrape off all the muddy or half-used piles, and clean carefully all the palateexceptthose places where the paint is still fresh and pure. Then, when you have to add moretothat, clean that place with the palette-knife before squeezing out the new color. In this

30way the palette will not look like a centre-table, but it will be practically clean, have agood clearmixing-surface, and you will neither waste paint nor be stingy with it.The Arm Palette. -For painting large canvases, where the largest-sized brushes areused and paint must be mixed ingreater quantities, the arm palette is a most convenientthing if it is well balanced. It is in the wayrather than otherwise for small pictures, andis useful only as it is particularly called for.

CHAPTER VIII: OTHER TOOLSIt remains to speak of those tools which are not essentials, butconveniences, to painting. Even as conveniences, however, they areof importance enough to have influence on your work. You can paint withthem, but you will work more easily for the having of them;

andsomething of the sort, although not necessarily of the same kind, youmust have. You may improvise something, in other words, totake theplace of these, but you would be wiser to get those which are made forthe purpose.

T

he Box. -First, the box. You must keep your things together somehow, and it wouldbe as well that youkeep them in a box which is portable and suited to the purpose. When you sketch you must havea proper box, and why not have one which is equally serviceable in-house? Those mostcommonly sold to amateurs are of tin, and they are various in size and construction, and not tooexpensive. The only thing against them isthe difficulty of adapting them to service different fromthat they were designed for; thatis, if you want to put in a different sort of panel, or it you wantto fix it in the cover forconvenience, or anything like that, you cannot readily do so, becauseyou cannot usetacks in them. This counts for more than would seem on a sketching trip. But thetin boxis light, and is not easily broken, and while it is in shape is practical.The box to be mostrecommended is the wooden one. It costs more than the tin one, -about twice as much; butyou always arrange if for an emergency very readily, and if itgets broken you can fix it yourself,or get any carpenter to do it for you, while you may bea good many miles from a tinner, whowould be necessary to mend your tin box. You had better not get too large a box. Get one longenough for the brushes; but if youare going to use it out-of-doors much, get a narrow one with afolding palette, so as tosave weight. In this way you will get a larger palette than you could get ina smaller andwider box, which is an important consideration.The Palette Knife. -Of more immediate necessity to your painting is the palette-knife. You cannot keep palette clean without it. Nowagain and again you may want tomix colors, or even paint with it. But you constantly get rid ofthe too much mixed coloron your palette with it, and this is essential to good painting. Takesome care to select agood knife; have the blade long enough to be springy and flexible, but nottoo long. About five inches from the wood of the handle to the end of the blade is a good

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length. And see that it bends in a true curve from one end to the other, and is not stiff at theendand weak in the middle. It should have the same even elasticity that a brush should have.Forpainting you need a trowel palette-knife, which has a bent shank, making the bladeand thehandle on different levels, so that as you press the blade to the canvas, the

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fingers are kept away from the painted surface. The shank should be round, and theblade veryfine and flexible. The knife should balance nicely in the hand, and turn freely in the fingers, sothat you can paint with either face of the blade with equal balance. Ittakes some care to pick outa good trowel-knife, as a poor one is worse than none.A scraper. -You frequently need to scrape rough paint form a canvas or picture, and you need to scrapestrongly to get a dirty palette clean. You can use in older razor for thefirst purpose, or a piece ofbroken glass, if you use it carefully, and any old knife can beused to clean your palette. But aregular tool is better than either. The scraper hereshown is the best.The Oil-Cup.- Do not use oils and vehicles very much. But when you need them youmust have something tokeep them in, convenient to the brush when working. It shouldhave a spring to hold it on to thepalette, and of such form that the contents are noteasily spilled by the movement of the hand

or the body when painting. The form hereillustrated is the best that has been brought out so far.The Mahl-Stick. -Sometimes you want to rest his the hand when painting, forsteadiness. The mahl- or rest-stickhas a ball on the end, which one usually covers witha wad of rag, so that it can be placed againstthe canvas without injury, and the handrested on it. It is so light that it can be held with thebranches in the palette hand, andstiff enough to support the brush-hand.Sketching Adjuncts. -Out-of-doors you must have a seat, and you should have anumbrella. The best seat for a man,because it can be folded into so small of space, is thethree-legged stool. This is not usuallysatisfactory for a woman, whose skirts tip it over.The better seat for her is show below. The backis not very firm, but it does give support,and the whole is light and strong.The umbrella shouldbe larger and tight, and one such as the illustration, with a valve inthe top to let the wind andhot air through, will be found cooler in less easily blown over. You should have some strong

rings sewn on to it, so that you can fasten it from four sidesby strings, to keep it steady if thewind blows hard. The umbrella should be of light-colored material, preferably white; but if it islined with black, the shade will be better,and give no false glow to the color.

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CHAPTER IX: STUDIOSA PAINTING-ROOM is always a matter of serious consideration, andto the beginner one of difficulty. The arrangement

of light is not easy,and a special window is almost always out of the question; yet in some way the light must be so managed that thecanvas is not covered withreflected lights which prevent one from seeing what the paint is reallylike.The North Light. -The first thing to be looked for is a steady light which will bealways about the same, and not be sunnypart of the time and in the shade the rest. A window looking to the north for this reason is generallyselected. The sun does not comeinto it, and the light is diffused and regular.The effect of thelight in the studio is cool, but colors are justly seen in it, and the lightthat falls on any object ormodel in it would be always the same. If there is to be askylight, they should be arranged in thesame way. The sash must not be flat, but mustbe nearly enough to the vertical to prevent the suns direct

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rays from entering, and itmust for that purpose face to the north. This makes to skylight practicallya high northlight in the roof or ceiling, and that is what it should be.Whether this sash is abovethe ceiling or jut below it, in the roof or in the wall, is of noparticular importance. The thing to be seento is that it is high enough for the light toenter above the head of the painter, and that it be so directedthat only north light cancome in.The size of the one does also to be carefully considered. It shouldnot be too large. Toomuch light will be sure to interfere with the proper control light and shade

on yourmodel, and too little will make your painting too dark. The position of the windowwithreference to the shape of the room has to do with this. The most probable form of a roomislong and narrow. For painting it is better that the window be in the middle of the endwall, highup, rather than in the middle of the side wall. You will find that you can moreeasily get distancefrom your model, and at the same time get the light both on him andon your canvas. Butpainting-room should not be too narrow. About one-third longerthan it is wide, with the window inone end, will give you a good light, and the furtherend of the room will not be too dark, as it would beapt to be if the room were longer.Preferably, too, the window should be to the left of the centreof the wall rather than tothe right, as you face it; so that whether you are as near the side wallyou can get, withthe light over your left shoulder (as it should be), the light will strike on thecanvas well,and not to directly on the front of the model. It will give you a better lateral positiontothe window, in other words. If you have to accept a window in a side wall, this is evenmore tobe looked for. If the window is to the right of the centre, you will have to turn sothat the length

falls on your canvas from the right, which is awkward, as the paint is inthe shadow of the handand brush which puts it on.

35T h e h e i g h t o f t h e l o w e r p a r t o f t h e w i n d o w s h o u l d b e a t l e a s t s i x f r o m t h ef l o o r , a n d f o r o r d i n a r y p u r p o s e s t h e p r o p o r t i o n o f w i n d o w s p a c e t o f l o o rs p a c e s h o u l d b e a b o u t o n e - t e n t h . I t i s i m p o s s i b l e t o g i v e a r u l e ; b u t i f t h ef l o o r i s a b o u t t w e l v e f e e t b y s i x t e e n , s a y , a w i n d o w a b o u t f i v e f e e t b y four will be enough, or six and a half by three if it is placed horizontally. If youwa nt in te ns e ligh t wi th st rong contr as t of l i g ht a nd s h a d e o n y o u r mo d e l , h av et h e w i n d o w s m a l l e r a n d s q u a r e r , a n d p l a c e y o u r e a s e l j u s t u n d e r i t , w h e r ethe l ig ht i s g ood . T he re s t o f the room w i l l b e d ark . B e t te rhave the windowlarge enough, and have it so curtained that you can cut off as muchlig ht as yo u

n e e d t o . A l l t h i s i s i f y o u a r e g o i n g t o m a k e y o u r s e l f a w i n d o w ; i nw h i c h c as e y ou w i l l t h i n k w e l l b e f o r e y o u c om m it y ou r s e l f . M o r e p r o b a b l yy ou w i l l ha v e t o g e t a l o n g a s b e s t y ou c a n w it h t h e o r d i na r y ro o m an d theordinary window. In which case get a high room with the window running upa sc l o s e t o t h e c e i l i n g a s p o s s i b l e , a n d f a c i n g n o r t h , t h e n y o u c a n c u r t a i nit so as tocontrol the light.A rra n gem ent of O r dina r y Win do ws. -For a goo d w or ki ng l ig ht you sho ul dhave only one window in your room; for thelight coming in from two openings willmak e a cr oss ing of ra ys whi ch wi lln o t o n l y i n t e r f e r e w i t h t h e s i m p l i c i t y o f t h e e f f e c t o f l i g h t a n d s h a d eo n y o u r m o d e l , b u t w i l l m a k e a g l a r i n g y o u r c a n v a s . Y o u c a n e i t h e r c l o s et h e l i g h t o u t o f t h e r i g h t - h a n d w i n d o w , o r , b e t t e r , a r r a n g e a c u r t a i n s o t h el i g h t f r o m o n e w i n d o w w i l l n o t f a l l o n t h e s a m e p l a c e a s t h a t f r o m t h eo t h e r . W h e n y o u a r e w o r k i n g f r o m s t i l l l i f e o r f r o m a m o d e l t h i s i s o f t e n a na d v a n t a g e , f o r y o u c a n h a v e a s t r o n g s i d e - l i g h t o n t h e m o d e l , a n d a s e c o n dl i g h t o n t h e c a n v a s . T o a r r a n g e t h i s , h a v e a s o r t o f c r a n e m a d e o f i r o n , s h a p e d l i k e a c a r p e n t e r s s q u a r e , w h i c h w i l l s w i n g a t r i g h t a n g l e s w i t hthe wal l , t he a rm reac hing , s ay s ix feet into the room. Swing this by means of staples well up to the ceiling, so that the light cannotget over it, and near to theright-hand window. From this arm you can hang a thick,dark curtain, which willcov e r and s hu t ou t the l i g ht f r om th e r ig ht -hand wind ow whe n s wu ng b ack over it. If you want to pose your model in the light of that window,while you paint i nthat of the other, swing the curtain out into the room at rightangles to the wall, andit will prevent a cross light from the two windows; so thatwh en th e mo de l isp o s e d b a c k o f t h e c u r t a i n t h e l i g h t f r o m t h a t w i n d o w w i l l n o t f a l l o n t h ec a n v a s , n o r t h e l i g h t f r o m t h e o t h e r f a l l o n t h e m o d e l . T h e l i g h t w i l l b eb e s t on y o u r p i c t u r e c o mi n g f r o m w e l l a b o v e a s y o u wo r k . T h e r e wi ll th en beno reflections on the paint. You may find it necessary to cover entirely the lowerh a l f o f t h e w i n d o w w h i c h g i v e s y o u r p a i n t i n g - l i g h t . Y o u w i l l f i n d

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i t u s e f u l t o h a v e a s h a d e o f g o o d s o l i d H o l l a n d , a r r a n g e d w i t h t h e r o l l e r a tth e bo tt om , an d astring running up through a pulley at the top; so that you maypull the shadeupf romthe b o ttom i ns te ad o f d o w n

from the top, and so cut off as much of the lower part of the wi nd ow as isne ce ss ar y. If you need the light from the lower part of the window, you may make athincu rta in o f mu s l in to cov e r the l owe r s as h, which wi l l l e t the l ig htth rou gh , but dif fus ethe rays and prevent reflection.

36The Size of the Studio. -Of course a large studio is a good thing, but it is not alwaysat ones command. But you should tryto have the room large enough to let you work freely, and have distance enough from the model.The size that I have mentioned, twelvefeet by sixteen, is as small is one should have, and onethat you can almost get. If theroom is smaller than that, you cannot do much in it, and fifteen bytwenty will giveample space.

55Proportions. -All good work is from the general to the particular, from the mass tothe detail. Keep that inmind as a fundamental principle in good work, whatever thekind. You should never place adetail till you have placed your larger masses. Therelative importance of things depends on theconsideration of the most important first.Let this be your first rule in drawing.Proportions next.Largest proportions, then exactness of relative proportions. Study first in masses. See nothing atfirst but the large planes. As Hunt said, Hang the nose onto the head, not the head on to the

nose. In getting proportions of the great masses, letno small variations of line or form breakinto your study of the whole. Therefore, seeoutlines first in straight lines and angles. If you cannot seethem at first, study to findthem; look at the long lines of movement; mass several curves into oneline representingthe general direction of them. Train yourself to look at things in this way. Thereisnothing which will not fall into position, so this will not be easy at first. The training of aquickperception of these things is a part of your training in drawing - the first essential.It is not thatthe straight lines are to be sought for themselves, but that they simplify thefirst breaking up ofthe whole into parts, and so makes more easy the study of proportion. The accuracy ofthe general masses makes possible a greater accuracy of thelesser proportion to come withinthem.You see form more truly also, when the perception is founded on a mass or alineindicating the larger character of it. It saves time for you, too. You dont have to rub outsomuch. The great lines and planes once established, everything else falls naturally intoplace.Spend much time over this part of a drawing. Cut the time you give to the drawinginto parts,

and let the part given to the laying in a larger proportions be from a third to ahalf of the wholetime, and study and correct these until they are right.Once these are right a very slight accenttells for twice what it would otherwise, and so you need much less detail to give the effect.Modeling. -In the same way that you have laid out the proportions in mass lay out your Proportions of lightand shade. Model your drawing by avoiding the small until thelarge variations of shade are inplace. Avoid seeing curves in relief as you have avoidedcurves of outline.Try to analyze themodelling into flat planes, each one large enough to give a definitemass of relief. Dont be afraid of an edgein doing this. Let your flat tone come frankly upto the next tone in stop. This again is not for anyeffective in itself, but only for facility exactness. Later you can loose it as much as you see fit inbreaking up the drawing intothe more delicate planes, and these again into the most subtle.Studyfirst the outline and then the planes. Constantly compare them as to relation; you will find it suggestive.Remember that your aim is to produce a whole, not a lot of parts, and although a whole includes

the parts, the parts are incidental.Measurements. -

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You will always have to use measurements for the sake of accuracy. Probably you will never beable to dispense with them. The best way would beto take them as matter of course, and get sothat you make them almost mechanically,without thinking of it. You will save yourself animmense deal of time and trouble by accepting this at once; for accuracy is impossible withoutmeasurements, and the habitof accuracy is the greatest time-saver.

56Hold your charcoal in your hand freely, so that your thumb can slip along it and mark off partsof the object when you sight at them across the coal. Measure horizontal and verticalproportions into themselves and into each other. Height and breadth are checksto each other. Ifthe height is a certain proportion of the breadth, then the smallerproportions of height musthave equivalent proportions to each otheras well as tobreadth. Measure these and you are sure of being right.Steps. -Divide your drawing into steps or stages of work. You will find a helpful thingin studying. Youwill do it quite naturally later. Do it deliberately at first, as a matter of training.First step.- Measure the extreme height and breadth of the whole group or object of your drawing, with

accuracy, and mark each extreme.Second step.- Outline the great mass of it with the simplest lines possible. Give thegeneral shape of thewhole. This block it in.Third step.- Measure each of the objects in the group, or the parts most prominent, if it be a single object.Measure its height and breadth, both in its own proportion and inproportion to the dimensionsof the other parts and of the whole. Enclose it in straightlines as you did with the whole mass.Fourth step.- Find the more important of the lesser proportions in each object, andblock them out also. Thisshould map out your drawing exactly and with somecompleteness.Fifth step.- Lay in simple flat tones to fill in these outlines, and keep the relations of light and dark very

carefully as you do so.Sixth step.- This should leave your paper with a few large masses of dark and light,which can now becut into again with the next smaller masses, giving more refinement tothe whole. This alsoshould so break up the edges as to get rid of any feeling of squareness or edginess.Seventh step.- Put in such accents of dark, or take out such of light, as will givenecessary character and forceto the drawing.I do not say that this method produces the most finished drawing; but it isa mostexcellent way to study drawing, and, more or less modified, is practically the basis ofallmethods. In practised hands it allows of any amount of exactness or freedom of execution. Ihave seen most beautiful work done in this way.Home Study. -It is not necessary to have a teacher in order to draw well; but it isnecessary to find out what arethe essentials of good drawing, and to work definitely andacquire them.Good drawing isa combination of exactness and freedom; and the exactness must comefirst. The structure of thething must be shown without unnecessary detail. You shouldalways look at any really gooddrawing you can come at, and try to see what there may be in it of helpful suggestion to you.Study the Masters. -Get photographs of drawings by the masters of drawing, andstudy them. See how they searchestheir model for form and character. Do not make somuch of the actual stroke as the mannerwhich is made to express and lend itself to themeaning.

57In this drawing by Albrecht D?rer you have a splendid example of exactness and feelingfor yourcharacter. You could have no better type of what to look for and how to expressit. Although it isnot important that you should lay on the lines of shading just as this isdone, it is importantto notice how naturally they follow, and conform to, the characterof the surface-which is one ofthe ways in which the points helps to search out themodelling.This drawing made with a blackand white chalk on a gray ground; a very good way tostudy.

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Materials. -parole purposes which come in the range of painter you should usecharcoal. For purposes ofstudy is the most satisfactory materials; it is sensitive, easy leak controlled, in easily corrected.The scheduler preliminary drawn on campus isequally good.You should have also a plumb-linewith which to test vertical positions of parts inrelations to each other, and this, with the pencilheld horizontally for other relativepositions, gives you all you need in that direction.In drawing

on the canvas it is not often necessary to do more than place the variousobjects and draw theiroutlines carefully and accurately. Sometimes, however, as infaces, or in pictures which includeimportant figures, you will need a shaded drawing,and this can be done perfectly with charcoal,and fixed with fixative afterwards.Imitation. -Perfect drawing, in the sense of exact drawing, is not the most importantthing. A drawing may beexact, and yet not be the truer for it. It may be inexact, and yetbe true to the greater character. So, too, thedrawing may have to change an accidentalfact which is not worth the trouble of expression orwhich will injure the whole. There issomething more important than detail, and the essentialcharacteristics can be expressedsometimes only by a drawing which is deliberately false incertain things in order to bethe more true to the larger fact.Then, too, there is an individualitywhich the artist has to express through hisrepresentation of the external; and he is justified inaltering or slighting facts in order tobring about that more important self-expression. Of course

the self must be worthexpressing. There is no excuse for mere falsification nor for mere inability.But a goodworkman will not be guilty of that, and the complete picture in its unity willbe his justification for whatever means he has taken.Feeling. -Drawing must be a matter of feeling. A perception of essential truth of athing, as much as oftrained observation of the facts. The good draughtsman becomes soby training his observationof facts first, always searching for those most important, andemphasizing those; and with thepower which will come in time to his eye and handeasily and quickly to grasp and express facts,will come also the power mine to grasp theessential characteristics. And a trained hand andeye will permit the most perfectfreedom of expression. This is the desideratum of the student;this is the end to be aimedat, the perfect union of the trained eye and hand to see and do,and the trained mindto feel and select, and the freedom of expression which comes of thatperfect union.

58

Study of Praying Hands, by Albrecht Durer

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64CHAPTER XIX: LIGHT AND SHADEChiaroscuro. -A few words about chiaroscuro and will be useful. Thisis a term of great importance and frequent use with artists and writersup towithin the last thirty or forty years. It has of late become almostunused. The reason for this was explained in the chapter on

Values.Nevertheless, it is well that the student should know what the wordmeant, and still means. Although he may hear and use it less frequentlythan

if he had lived earlier in the century, the pictures, certain qualitiesof which no other word expresses, still exist, and are probably asimmortalas anything in this world can be. He should know what thosequalities are, and he should understand their relation to the work of to-day.

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Chiaroscuro is described by an old writer as suggesting a theme which is mostinteresting, perhaps,in the whole range of the art of painting. Of vast importance, greatextent, and extreme intricacy.Chiaroscuro is an Italian compound word whose twoparts,chiarandoscuro

, signify simplybrightandobscure, orlightanddark. Hence theart or branch of art that bears the name regards all the relations of light and shade,andthis independently of coloring, notwithstanding that in painting, coloring and the clair-obscure are of their very nature inseparable. The art of clair-obscure, therefore, teachesthepainter the disposition and arrangement in general of his lights and darks, with alltheir degrees,extreme and intermediate, of tint and shade, both in single objects, as theparts of a picture, and

in combination as one whole, so as to produce the bestrepresentation possible in the bestmanner possible; sensation possible in the bestmanner possible; that is,so as to produce the most desirable effect upon the senses and spirit of the observers. In a word, its end and aim are fidelity and beauty of imitation; itsmeans, every effect of light;chromatic harmonies and contrasts; chromatic values,reflections; the degradations ofatmospheric perspective, etc. The italics are mine.You see at once that this covers a pretty widefield. But it is to be again noted that theuse of chiaroscuro by the old painters meant not onlythe expression of the light andshade of nature, but the so arranging of the objects and theway that the light waspermitted to fall on them, that certain parts of the picture became shadow,while thelight was concentrated in some other part or parts. In this way the arrangement ofthelight and shade of a picture became a distinct element of composition, and a very importantone. Thequalityof light was something to be emphasized by contrast. It isstated (whether truly or not) that theproportion of light to dark was according to adefinite rule or principle with certain painters,some permitting more, and some less,

65space of canvas to be proportioned to light and to dark. The gradations of light and dark spreadover the canvas was calculated upon, so that the less space of light and thegreater the space ofdark, the more brilliant would be the main spot of light in thepicture. They wrought with thequality of light and shadeas anelement, just as they would with the quality of light and of color, considered apart from objects or factsthey might represent.Arbitrary Lighting. -This is the arbitrary light and shade spoken of in the chapteron Values; and although the olderpainters included what we now call values in theirword chiaroscuro, it is this fact of arbitrarylighting as opposed to accepting the light asit does fall, or selecting those places or times whereit does naturally fall as we would likeit to, that makes the difference between modern paintinggenerally and the oldermethod, and has made chiaroscuro as a word and as a quality of paintingso much athing of the past.Light and Shade. -But we may use the old word with a more restricted meaning. If we use it to mean literally lightand shade, the way light falls on objects and the relief due to the light side and the shadow sideof them, we get a use which implies a very important and practical matter for present study.Objects Visible by Light and Shadow. -If you will put a white egg on a piece of white paper, with another white paper back of it, you willsee that it is only because theegg obstructs the light, the side of it towards the light preventingthe light rays fromtouching the other side, and so casting a shadow on itself and on the paper, that the eggis

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visible. You will also see, if you manipulate the egg, the according as the light isconcentrated ordiffused, or according to the sharpness of the shadow and light, is theegg more or less distinct.Contrast. -Apply these facts to other objects, and you will see how important theprinciple of contrast is tothe representation of nature. Not only contrast of light andshade, but contrast of color. And youshould make a study, both by setting up groups of objects in different lights, and by studying effects of

lights wherever you are, of thepossibilities and combinations of light and shadow.Constant Observation. -The painter is constantly studying his eyes. It is notnecessary always to have the brush in your hand inorder to be always studying. Keep your brain active in making observations and considering therelations in nature around you. The amount of material you can store up in this way is immense,to say nothing of the training it gives you in the use of your eyes, and in the practice of selection of motivesforwork. Schemes of color or composition are not usually deliberately invented withinthe paintersbrain. They are in most cases the result of some suggestion from a chanceeffect noticed andremembered or jotted down, and afterwards worked out. Nature is thegreater suggester. It is theartists business to catch the suggestion and make it his own.For nature seldom works out herown suggestions. The effect as nature gives it is eithernot complete, or is so evanescent as tobe uncopyable. But the habit of constantreceptivity on the part of the artist makes nature aninfinite mine of possibilities to him.

Perception. -Only by continually observing and judging if contrasts and relationscan the eye be trained toperceive subtle distinctions; yet it must be so trained, for allgood work is dependent on thesedistinctions.

66Effects of Light. -It is important to study the different qualities of light. Take, forinstance, the difference ofcharacter on a sunny day and on a gray day. On the former,fine distinctions of color are lesspronounced; they are lost in contrasts of sunlight andshadow. On a gray day the light is diffused;contrast is less, but the finer distinctions aremore marked. For the study of the subtleties of colorchoose a gray day. So, too, is thedifference marked between the general light of out-doors and

the more concentratedlight of the house. The pitch is different. Outside, even in a dark day,the generalcharacter of light is clearer, more full, than in-doors.There is nothing possible underthe open sky like the strong contrasts you get from asingle window in an otherwise unlightedroom.Compare, for instance, the character of the light and shade as shown in theillustrations onpages 156 and 159. The one if the diffused, out-of-door light, the otherthat from a studiowindow. The character of the subject has nothing to do with thisquality. The head would haveless of sharpness and contrast in the open air, and morereflected light. Other differences to bestudied as to quality of light in the manner of itscontrast, and also for its color quality, are to beseen in moonlight or nightlight ascompared with daylight.Artificial light, such as lamp-and candle-light, gives marked effect also, which may becompared with daylight both as it isout-of-doors and in its more concentrated effects inthe studio. Compare the picture of theWoman Sewing by Lamplight, by Millet, withthe Canal and the Bohemian Woman givenabove. The effects of gas and electric lightalso should be studied. Their characteristics both ofcontrast and, particularly, of colorare worth your attention as a student, inasmuch as theessence of some pictures lies inthese qualities.Another matter of great importance to thestudent, and one which the same threeillustrations just referred to me serves to show, is theeffect on objects of the position of the point of entrance of the light with reference to them tothem and to the observer. Thesimplest light is the side-light from a single widow. This givesbroad, sharp masses of light and shade, and makes the study of drawing and paintingmore simple.With the observer in the same relative position to the subject, as the lightswingsround towards a point back of him the contrasts becomes less, the relations moresubtleand difficult of recognition, and naturally the study of them more difficult. In thisposition of light thevalues become close. To make the object seen at all, it is necessary that the finest distinctionsshall be observed.Portrait painters have always been fond a top light, which gives a directconcentratedlight descending on the sitter, very similar in character to the side-light, butmorefavorable to the expression and drawing of the face.Cross Lights. -The most confusing and difficult of study and representation are thecross lights. If there areseveral windows or other points for the admission of light andthe sitter or object painted

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is between them, the light comes from all sides, so that therays cross each other and there isno single scheme of light and shade. The rays from oneside modify the shadows cast from theother side, and a perplexing and involvedarrangement of values is the result. This is a favoritetechnical with painters, and itssolution is splendid training; but the student who cansuccessfully solve it is not far fromthe end of his student days.

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72The Golden Stairs, by Burne-Jones, is almost purely an arrangement in line, andbeautifullyillustrates the use of this element as the main sthetic motive in a picture.Compare thiscomposition in line with the Descent from the Cross, in which the line isequally marked, but

more complicated, and used in connection with mass to a muchgreater extent, and involved withinterrelations of chiaroscuro and color. Consider theeffect which each picture derives as a wholefrom this management of these elements.The one emphasizing that of line, with the resultant ofrhythm and grace; the otherbalancing the elements, and so gaining power andimpressiveness.Often the whole composition should be balancing of the elements, as in thiscase. Butthe emphasizing the one element always emphasize the characteristics to whichthoseelements tend as the main characteristic of the picture.Grace, rhythm, movement, comemost naturally from arrangement chiefly in line. If mass comes into the picture, the masses maybe arranged to help the line, or to modify it. In The Sower the management of mass is such asto give great dignity, and almostsolemnity, to the picture, yet not to take away from the rhythmic swing andaction of thefigure which comes from line, but even to emphasize it. Compare this in theserespectswith the lighter grace of The Golden Stairs and the less unified movement, butgreateractivity, of the Descent from the Cross.Of course masses will come into the picture;

either the masses themselves can bearranged into line, or there can be emphasis given to lineswhich break up of modify masses, so that the character the pictures governed by them.Mass. -In the arrangement mass, light and shade and color are effective. Smallergroups may be madeinto a larger one, and individual objects also brought together, by grouping them in light or inshade, or by giving them a common color.Weight, dignity, the statuesque, scale, arecharacteristics of mass. Lines in thisconnection only takes from the brusqueness that mass alonewould have, or helps tobreak up any tendency to monotony. The Return to the Farm, by Millet,shows thiscombination, the reverse of The Sower. In this, the line is used to enrich the reposeandweight, the statuesque of the mass. In the other, the mass gives dignity andimpressiveness tothe grace and rhythm of the line. The color scheme of course will havean equal effect inemphasizing or modifying of the motive of line or mass. Color withoutonly have an effect on it,but must be in sympathy with it, or the balance will be lost.

Color. -This is mainly where composition in color will come in. Light and shade orchiaroscuro, as Iexplained in the last chapter, are necessarily intimately connected withcomposition here. Andyou never work in color or mass without working in light andshade also. Of color itself I shallspeak in the next chapter. It is only necessary to pointout the fact of connection here. Of coursein painting, all the elements are most closely related. Although it is necessary to speak of themseparately in the actual working out, you keep them all in mind together, and so make themcontinually help and modify eachother.A Principle. -There is a well-established principle in architecture, that you mustnever try to emphasize twoproportions in one structure. A hall may be long and narrow,but not both long and wide; inwhich case the proportions would neutralize each other - you would have a simple square,characterless. You may emphasize height or breadth -not both, or you get the same negative character.

73So you may apply this principle more or less exactly to the composition of a picture.Dont try toexpress too many things in one picture, or if you do, let some one be themain thing, and all therest be subordinate to it. There is perhaps no law more rigid thanthe one which denies success toany attempt to scatter force, effect, and purpose. Onemain idea in each picture, and everythingsubordinated to lend itself to the strengtheningof that.To a certain extent this will apply toline and mass, though not absolutely. As a rule,line or mass, one or the other, must be themain element.Leverage. -I have often thought that much insight into the principles of balance of masses, and of mass andline, could be gained by thinking of it analogously toequilibrium in leverage. A small mass, or asimple line or accent, may be made tobalance a very much greater mass. The greater part of a

canvas may be one mass, and bebalanced by quite a small spot. But leverage must come in tohelp. Somewhere in thepicture will be the point of support, the fulcrum. And the large mass willbe the leastdense, the small one the most dense, and the equilibrium is establishes. For

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compositionis but the equilibrium of the picture, and equilibrium the picture must have.Thereare many rules as to placing of mass and arrangement of line, but they are allmore or lessarbitrary and limiting in influence. Individuality must and will ignore suchrules, just becausecom- position deals chiefly with the abstract qualities, rules will nothelp. A fine feeling orperception of what is right is the only law, and the trained eye isthe only measure. As in values,so in composition you must study relations in nature,and results in the work of the masters, to

train your eye to see; and you must sketch andblock in all sorts of combinations with your ownhand, to give you practical experience.Scale. -One point of great importance should be noticed. That is the effect on theobserver of the size of any mainmass or object with reference to the size of the canvas.This is analogous to what is called scale inarchitecture.If the mass or object is justly proportioned to the whole surface of the canvas, andistreated in accordance with it, it will impose its own scale on all other objects. You canmake afigure impress the observer as being life size, although it may really be only a few inches long. Ahouse or castle coming into the picture may be made to give its scale tothe surroundings, andmake them seem small instead of itself seeming merely an objectin a picture. This will be dueto the placing of it on the canvas, largely, and more in thisthan in anything else. The manner ofpainting will a1so lend importantly to it j for anobject to appear big must not be drawn norpainted in a little manner.The placing of objects of a known size near, to give scale, is a useless

expedient in sucha case. At times it may be successful, often of use; but if the scale of the mainobject isfalse, the other object of known size, instead of giving size to the main one, asit isintended to do, will be itself dwarfed by it.Placing. -This matter of p1acing is one which you should constantly practise. Makeit a regular study whenyou are sketching from nature. Try to concentrate in yoursketches so as to help your study ofcomposition. In making a sketch, look for one maineffect, and often have that effect the importance ofsome object, studying to give it scaleby the placing and the treatment of it, and its relation to the thing;surrounding it innature and on the canvas. In this way you will be studying composition in amostpractical way.

74

Still Life. -For practical study of composition, the most useful materials you canhave are to be found in stilllife. Nowhere can you have so great freedom of arrangementin the concrete. You can take asmany actual objects as you please, and place themfreedom of arrangement in the concrete. Youcan take as many actual objects as youplease, and place them in all sorts of relations toeach other, studying their effect as togrouping; and so study most tangibly the principles as well as thepractice of bringingtogether line and mass and color as elements, through the means of actualobjects. This you should constantly do, till composition is no more an abstract thing, but apracticalstudy in which you may work out freely and visibly intellectual sthetic ideasalmostunconsciously, and train your eye to see instinctively the possibilities of all sortsof compositions, and to correct the falsities of accidental combinations.Dont Attempt too much. -Dont be too ambitious. Begin with simplearrangements, and add to them, studying thestructure of each new combination andgrouping. When you are going to paint, remember that too muchof an undertaking willnot give you any more beauty in the picture, and may lead todiscouragement.In the Chapter on Still Life I will explain more practically the means you maytake,and how you may take them, to the end of making composition a practical study to you.

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74Still Life. -For practical study of composition, the most useful materials you canhave are to be found in stilllife. Nowhere can you have so great freedom of arrangementin the concrete. You can take asmany actual objects as you please, and place themfreedom of arrangement in the concrete. Youcan take as many actual objects as youplease, and place them in all sorts of relations toeach other, studying their effect as togrouping; and so study most tangibly the principles as well as thepractice of bringingtogether line and mass and color as elements, through the means of actualobjects. This you should constantly do, till composition is no more an abstract thing, but a

practicalstudy in which you may work out freely and visibly intellectual sthetic ideasalmostunconsciously, and train your eye to see instinctively the possibilities of all sortsof compositions, and to correct the falsities of accidental combinations.Dont Attempt too much. -Dont be too ambitious. Begin with simplearrangements, and add to them, studying thestructure of each new combination andgrouping. When you are going to paint, remember that too muchof an undertaking willnot give you any more beauty in the picture, and may lead todiscouragement.In the Chapter on Still Life I will explain more practically the means you maytake,and how you may take them, to the end of making composition a practical study to you.

The Sower

, by Millet

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81Primaries and Secondaries. -As all the other shades of color are produced by thecombinations (over-lappings) of the waves orvibrations in the light rays from theprimary colors, we have a series of colors called secondaries,because they are made upof the rays of any two of the three primaries: as purple, which is acombination of blueand red. When dealing withlight

the secondaries are: shades of violet and purple fromred and blue; shades of orange red, orange,orange yellow, yellow, and yellowish greenfrom red and green; and bluish green and greenishblue from blue and green -thecharacter of the color being decided by the proportions of theprimaries in the mixture.These conclusions have been reached mainly through experiments inwhite light. Theprimaries so obtained do not hold good with pigment, as I have stated, but theprinciplesdo. It will avoid confusion if I speak hereafter of the combinations as they occurwithpigment, it being borne in mind that it is a practical fact that we are dealing with ratherthana scientific one.In dealing withpigmentthe primaries are red, blue, andyellow, notgreen. Of coursethe secondaries are also changed; and we have purple and violet shades from redandblue, orange from red andyellow

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; and green from blue and yellow - all of which vary inshade with the proportion of the, mixtureof the primaries, as is the case with light.Tertiaries. -Another class of shades or colors is calledtertiary, or third; for they aremixtures of all the three primaries, or of a primary with a secondary which

does notresult from mixture with that primary. Tertiaries are allgrays, and grays are practically always tertiaries. If you keep this in mind as a technical fact, it willhelp you inmanagement of color. Grays are, to the painter, always combinations of colorwhichinclude the three primaries. The usual idea is that gray is more or less of a negationof color. This is rot so.Gray is the balancing of all color, so that any true harmony of color,however rich itmay be, is always quiet in effect as a whole; that is, grayish -good color is nevergarish. Itis very important that the painter should understand this characteristic of color.Youcannot be too familiar with the management of grays. If you try to make your grays withnegative colors,you will not produce harmonious color, but negative color, and negativecolor is only a shirkingof the true problem.Grays made of mixtures of pure colors, balancings of primaries andsecondaries, that is,modifications of the tertiaries, are quite as quiet in effect and quite asbeautiful as any,but they are also more luminous; they are

livecolor instead ofdeadcolor. Grays madeby mixing black with everything are the reverse, and should not be usedexcept when youuse black as a color (which it is inpigment), giving a certain color quality to the gray thatresults from it.Complementary Colors. -Two colors are said to be complementary to each otherwhen they together contain thethree primaries in equal strength. Green, for instance, isthe complementary of red, forit contains yellow and blue; orange (yellow and red) iscomplementary to blue; and purple, (redand blue) is complementary to yellow.The knowledge of complements of colors is veryimportant to the painter, for all theeffects of color contrast and color harmony are due to this.Complementary colors, inmass, side by side, contrast. The greatest possible contrast is thatof thecomplementaries.

82Complementary colors mixed, or so placed that small portions of them are side by side,as inhatching or stippling, give the tertiaries or grays by the mixing of the rays. The Law of ColorContrast. - When two dissimilar colors are placed in contiguity, they are alwaysmodified insuch a manner as to increase their dissimilarity.]Warm and Cold Color. -Red and yellow are called warm colors, and blue is calleda cold color. This is not that the color isreally cold or warm, of course, but that they convey the impression of warmth and coldness. It ismainly due to association probably,for those things which are warm contain a large proportionof yellow or red, and thosewhich are cold contain more blue. There is a predominance of coldcolor in winter and of the warm colors in summer.From the primaries various degreesof warmth and coldness characterize thesecondaries and tertiaries, as they contain more or lessproportionately of the warm orcold primaries.In contrasting colors these qualities have greateffect.Color Juxtaposition. -In studying the facts of color contrast and color juxtaposition you will find that two pigments, ifmixed in the ordinary way, will have oneeffect; and the same pigments in the same proportions,mixed not by stirring them intoone mass, but by laying separate spots or lines of the pigmentside by side, produce quiteanother. The gain in brilliancy by the latter mode of mixing is great,because you havemixed thecolor rayswhich are really light rays, instead of mixing thepigmentas in theusual way. You have really mixed the color by mixinglight

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as far as is possible to do itwith pigment. You have taken advantage of all the light reflecting power of thepigmenton which the color effect depends.Each pigment, being nearly pure, reflects the rays ofcolor peculiar to it, unaffected by the neutralizing effect of another color mixed with it; while theneutralizing power of theother color being side by side with it, the waves or vibrations of thecolor rays blend by overlapping as they come side by side to the eye; and so the color, made upof the twowaves as they blend, is so much more vibrant and full of life.

Yellow and Purple. -It is this principle which is the cause of the peculiarity inthe technique of certain Impressionistpainters. The yellow lights and purpleshadows is only placing by the side of a color that colorwhich will be most effective inforcing its note.Brilliancy is what these men are after, and they get itby the study of the law of colorcontrast and color juxtaposition. The effect of complementaries incolor contrast is what you must study for this, for the theory of it. For the practice of it, studycarefully andfaithfully the actual colors in nature, and try to see what are the real notes, whatthereally component colors, of any color contrast or light contrast which you see. Purpleshadowsand yellow light re-enforcing each other you will find to exist constantly innature. Refine yourcolor perception, and you will be able to get the result without theobviousness of the meanswhich has brought down the condemnation on it. Closer study of the relations is the way to findthe art of concealing art.But yellow and purple are not the only complementaries. All throughthe range of color, the secondaries and tertiaries as well as the primaries, this principle

of complement plays a part. There is no color effect you can use in painting which does nothaveto do, more or less, with the placing of the complementary color in mass, to

83e m p h a s i z e ; o r m i x e d t h r o u g h t o n e u t r a l i z e , t h e f o r c e o f i t . T r a i n y o u r e y e sto se ew hat the color is which makes the effect. Analyze it, see the parts in thething, so that you may get the thing in the same way, if you would get it of the sameforce as innature.Practical Color. -A l l t h e s e th e or e t i c a l i d e a s a s t o c o l o r h av e t h e i r r e l a t i o n t o t h e ac tu alhandling of pigment, which is the craft of the painter. The facts of contrastingan dh a r m o n i z i n g c o l o r r e l a t i o n h a v e a p r a c t i c a l b e a r i n g o n t h e p a i n t e r s w o r k ,b ot h i n w h a t h e i s t o e xp r e s s a n d h o w h e i s t o d o i t ; as to h i s c o nc e p t i o n o f

a p i c t u r e a n d h i s r e p r e s e n t a t i o n o f f a c t s . I n h i s c o n c e p t i o n h e m u s t d e a lw i t h t h e p o s s ib i l i t ie s o f e f f e c t o f c o l o r o n c o l o r . Th e p ow e r o f o n e c o l o rt o s t r e n g t h e n t h e p e r s o n a l h u e o f a n o t h e r ,ori t s p o w e r t o m o d i f y t h a t h u e , i s a f a c t b e a r i n g o n w h e t h e r t h e c o l o rin th epicture is the true image of the color he has seen in his mind. In the samed e g re e mu s t th is pos s ib i l i ty a f f e ct h is re pre s e ntat ion o f actu al ob je cts .Theg r e a t e s t p o s s i b i l i t i e s o f l u m i n o s i t y i n s u n l i g h toratmospheric effects comefro m t he p ower to pro duce v ibr ati on by c oolcon tra sted with warm I col or. You wil l f ind that a red is not so rich in anyposition as when you place its complementary nea r it . At ti mes yo u wi ll f i nd itimpossible to get the snap and sparkle to a scarlet -cannot make it carry,cannot make it felt in your picture as you want it withoutpl ac in g a to uc h ofpu rpl e , pe rhaps , ju s t b e s id e i t ; to p l ace ne ar b y a d ark e r note wi l l not hav ethe same effect. It is the contrast of color vibration, not the contrast of lightandshade, which gives the life. And at the same time that you enhance the brilliancy o ft h e s e v e r a l n o t e s o f c o l o r i n t h e p i c t u r e , y o u h a r m o n i z e t h e w h o l e . F o r t h em o s a i c o f c o l o r s p o t s a l l o v e r t h e c a n v a s b r i n g s a b o u t t h e b a l a n c e o f c o l o rin thecomposition, and harmony is the result.S t udy R el a t i o n. -Y o u mu s t co n s t an t l y s t u d y t h e a c t u a l r e l a t i o ns o f c o l o r i nn a t u r e . Y ou w i l lf i n d , i f y o u l o o k f o r i t , t h a t a l w a y s , j u s t w h e r e i n a r t y o u w o u l d n e e d at o u c h o f t h e c o m p l e m e n t a r y f o r s t r e n g t h o r f o r h a r m o n y , n a t u r e h a s p u t i tt h e r e . S h e d o e s i t s o s u b t l y t h a t o n l y a c l o s e o b s e r v e r w o u l d s u s p e c t i t . R u tt h e t h i n g i s t h e r e , a n d i t i s y o u r b u s i n e s s t o b e t h e c l o s e o b s e r v e r w h os e e s i t , b o t h f o r y o u r t r a i n i n g a s a c o l o r i s t , a n d y o u r u s e a s a n i n t e r p r e t e ro f n a t u r e s b e a u t i e s . I t i s y o u r b u s i n e s s t o s e e s u b t l y , f o r n a t u r e u s e scol ors subt ly. The not e sp arkl es i n na tur e, b ut you do not notice the

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complementary color near it. Can you not also place thecomplementary color so thatit is not seen, but its influence on the important color isfelt? It is by searching outthesef i n e s s e s

of nature that you train your eye. You mustactually see these colors. At first youmay only know that they must be there becausethe effect is t here. But your eye is

capable of actually recognizing them themselves,and you ar e no pai nt er ti l l itcan. The theoretical knowledge is and should be a helpto you, but the actualpower of sight is most important. A painter may use theoreticalknowledge to helphis self-training, but power of eye he must have as the result of that training. Theinstantaneous recognition of facts and relations, the immediateand perfect union ofeye and thought, are what make that intuitive perception whichis the true feeling ofthe artist.Work this out with eye a nd palette. Study the color and its relation innature, andstudy its analogy in the pigment touches on the c anvas.

84The Palette. -You try to attain natures effects of light with pigment. Pigment is lesspure than light. You cannot have the same

scale, the same range, but you must do thebest you can, and the arrangement of your palette will helpyou. As you have not aperfect blue, a perfect red, and a perfect yellow, you must have two colorsfor one. Yourpaints will always be more or less impurely primary. No one red will make a purepurplewith blue, and an equally pure orange with yellow. Yet pure purple and pure orangeyoumust be able to make. Have, then, both a yellowish or orange red and a bluish orpurplish redon your palette. Do the same with blue and yellow. In this way you can notonly getapproximately pure secondaries when you need them, but the primariesthemselves leansomewhat towards the secondaries, so that you can make very delicatecombinations with purecolors. A bluish yellow and a yellowish blue, for instance, willmake a rather positive green. Byusing a reddish yellow and a bluish or purplish red. youpractically bring in the red note,and make a grayer green while still using only twopigments.So, too, you get similar controlof effects by the use of opaque or transparent pigments,the transparent ones tending to richness,the opaque to dulness of color. Variousprocesses in the manner of laying on paint bring about

these different qualities, and willbe spoken of in the chapter on Processes.Classify yourpigments in your mind in accordance with these characteristics. Think of the ochres,for instance, as mainly opaque, and as yellows tending to the reddish. Withany blue they makegray greens because of the latter quality, and they make gray orangeswith red because ofthe dulness of their opacity and body. For richer greens think of thelighter chromes andcadmium yellows or citrons; and for the richer oranges, the deepercadmiums and chromes.With reds, work the same way, scarlet or orange vermilions forone side of the scale, and theChinese or bluish vermilion on the other side. The deeperand heavier reds fall in line the sameway. Indian red is bluish, light red and venetian red are yellowish.

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85The Lady of Shallott

, by Holman Hunt

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Cardplayers At Candlelight

, By Gerard Dou

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The Sergeants Portrait, by Ernest Messionier

90It has been said that there are as many ways of painting as there are painters. Certainly there areas many ways as they are men of any originality. For however a painter hasbeen trained,whatever the methods which he has been taught to use, he will alwayschange them, more or less, inadapting them to his own purposes. An as the main intentof the art of an epoch or period differs fromthat of a previous one, so the manner of laying on paint will change to meet the needs of thatdifference. The manner of paintingto-day is very different from that of other times. Some ofthe old processes are lookedupon by the modern man is quite beneath his recognition. Yet thesesame methods arenecessary to certain qualities, and if the modern man does not use or approve

of thosemethods, it is because he is not especially interested in the qualities which theyarenecessary to.There is probably no one statement which all fair-minded painters willmore willingly acquiesce in, then one which friends at the method by which the result is attained

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isunimportant, prodded that the result is attained, and that it is one worth attain. Every manwill, whether it is right or not, use those methods which most surely and completely bring aboutthe expression of the thing he w

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