A grisaille underpainting establishes the tonal structure of the picture.
A grisaille underpainting is the second step after drawing in the classic method of completing a painted picture. To paint en grisaille means to brush in a gray colored foundation layer of paint. It gets its name from gris, the French word for gray. A monochrome grisaille that's any color other than gray is called a camaieu. The grisaille technique was common in the Renaissance period of the 1400s and was used by Rembrandt, Leonardo Da Vinci and Caravaggio. Dutch Golden Age painters used the grisaille method for their realistic paintings. The monochromatic grisaille underpainting establishes the tonal relationships of the finished work and unifies the painted composition.
Instructions
1. Prepare your canvas ahead of time for your grisaille painting. Stretch the canvas over a wooden stretcher, using canvas-stretching pliers and a staple gun. Pull it tight and trim off any excess canvas. Staple down the canvas around the edges of the stretcher. Brush on a thick coat of gesso, smoothing out any brush strokes. Sand it smooth when it dries out. Apply three more coats, sanding between each layer. Thin each successive gesso coat with water.
2. Study, photograph and sketch the subject matter of your painting before you draw your final composition on the canvas. Use these studies as references to draw the design on your picture on the canvas. Draw with charcoal or carbon pencils. Draw as accurately as you can, paying attention to details. Correct any mistakes in draftsmanship at this stage before you start painting. Keep in mind Chris Bingle's adage: "Good drawing forms the 'bones' on which a strong painting hangs."
3. Select the color you will use for the monochrome grisaille painting. Use Payne's gray for a cool bluish tint to your work. Paint with reddish earth tones for a warm glow under your later colors. Use the Italian version of grisaille called verdaccio if you're painting a portrait or figures. Mix a cool grayish-green color that will impart a realistic skin tone to the subject of your finished painting. Lay in a light wash, covering the entire canvas to give it an overall tint. Blend a lot of white paint into the gray to keep your grisaille in a high tonal key. Mix up grays containing complementary colors and contrast them with each other for vibrancy in a landscape painting.
4. Block in the negative and positive areas of your composition. Define the relationships between lit and shadowed parts of your picture. Show a relationship in space between the forms. Establish the value structure of the painting without worrying about the color scheme. Once the tonal structure is set down, use the value contrasts to create a sense of three-dimensional space. Play off light and shade to achieve a chiaroscuro affect.
5. Finish up the details of your underpainted subforms and tonal baseline guides. Dry the gisaille out before painting on the overpainted layers. Thin your paint out and paint it in overlaying coats over the monochromatic grisaille. Build up your colors with glazes of translucent paint. Use bright colors and match their chromatic hue value to the tonal values laid down in the grisaille. Combine these elements to create a unified and harmonious picture.
