The "canvas" is an aluminum sign blank which comes coated in a shiny white finish. It measures 18"x24".
The white base was scuffed with a Scotchbrite® pad to promote adhesion and wiped clean with alcohol. I applied transfer tape to the surface and traced onto it a line drawing of the image, working from one of my own photographs.
Then, using a very sharp X-acto blade, I began to cut away segments, working from darker to lighter areas. This technique of painting is known as chiaroscuro (It. clear-dark) and was a style of drawing from the Renaissance. By this way, you can concentrate on shading and areas of light and dark before adding color. I used a sepia tone I mixed myself with brown darkened with black.
As of this writing Lacquerol® is available in two consistencies - "Ultra" is thinner and regular is thicker, so you have to thin accordingly. You'll have to experiment with what consistency of thinning flows through and atomizes better with your particular airbrush. As a guideline, I thinned Lacquerol® 2:1, two parts thinner to one part paint; and Ultra-Lacquerol® 1:1. My airbrush was the Iwata HPSB with side color cup.
Here I decided to work on the steps as a way to get a feel for the paint. I found that if I laid on too many layers of pigment, the color started to become too opaque, muddying the brightness. Luckily it looked right for the earthy terra cotta. As explained above, I worked from light to dark. I set aside all the little pieces of transfer tape just in case I would need them later to mask an adjacent section from overspray.
Most of the background is done in this step, because the white of the house and the grayish-white of the walk would just be light tints. So, I somewhat detailed the ground cover wood chips and the palm tree trunk. The way I approach this is to think in terms of blocks of color and not worry too much about trying to get very detailed with the airbrush. The airbrush is best for smooth blends and transitions of colors, so that is what I concentrated on. Again, I worked from a sepia to lighter colors allowing the sepia to show underneath the color.
I started on her arm and realized at this point that the color was getting too opaque, so I decided to go with pure colors and tinted clears and was more careful about not putting too much pigment down. I actually mixed clear with some pure pigment to make a more translucent color. That worked great where it really counted in the skin tones.
One advantage of Lacquerol® is that you can wipe it off and start over if you are not happy with your work. I actually redid her nose and a great part of her face because I inadvertently went too dark. With q-tips dipped in Lacquerol® thinner I carefully cleaned off the areas I did not like and started over.
I try to do the paint application in multiple passes, so the paint really has to be thin. That way there is less chance of going too heavy or missing your mark.
All that is left to airbrush is the dress and shoes, both just light tints of sepias, blacks and blues. Up to and including this image is all done with the airbrush alone. Once I am happy with all the blocked-in areas of color, blends and shading I put the airbrush down. I might do some minor adjustments later but at this point 99% of the airbrushing is done. As you can see, it still lacks detailing. The areas brightly lit by the sun on the steps and wall I left unpainted to replicate the way it looked in the original photo. It may be more impressionistic than photo-realistic that way, but it gives it a real tropical feel.
Now, I got out a spray can of Rustoleum® matte finish clear #1902830. I had already tried it on a scrap to make sure it wouldn't ruin all my hard work. I put two or three even coats down and let it dry thoroughly. Then, I got some 3M® 400 sanding foam strips (600 sandpaper would work, too) and gave the clear a good scuffing.
The clear protects the paint and seals it making it permanent. The sanding gives the clear a texture so that I can use color pencils. If the surface is too shiny the color pencil simply does not take hold. Without the clear the Lacquerol® is too slick and you certainly do not want to sand your fine work. The color pencils must be the kind that dissolve in water. I used Prismacolor® watercolor pencils. I also used a 3/0 paint brush with the watercolor to detail it out. You see how this technique adds texture and sharpens the image.
And here you have it - the final product. I could have continued adding more detail, but considering the abstractness of the background, stopped where it looked pleasing to the eye. After everything was done and dry I resealed it with about three or four coats of the same Rustoleum® clear protecting and making permanent the watercolor work.
Here is a close-up of the work. The technique expressed here is only one approach to painting. Next time I will do a few things differently based on what I learned from doing this painting.
