Painting In Progress - Black Wolf | Sketch & Base Colors

     For this painting, I decided to go with a portrait of the wolf instead of the full body, putting him in the shadows of the pine tree and with a woodsy background.

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      When doing the sketch, I knew I wanted a dark background with the pine tree branches if front of the wolf. So to add a little color I am adding some colorful leaves to the foreground as well.

     From the reference photo, I decided to trace the photo onto a sheet of paper and then transferring it onto my masonite, instead of free hand sketching. By doing this I am not losing any detail within the wolf. Sometimes I will use a grid to sketch out my image from a reference photo, using tracing paper and making 1" x 1" squares. Then depending on the size I want the painting to be I will draw the grid lines onto the masonite or canvas accordingly to the proportions. Say I wanted the image to be doubled the size in my reference photo, I would then draw my grid 2" x 2" squares on the masonite. I would do this only for the main subject matter and then free hand the surrounding scenery.

     I wanted a warm look to my painting, so I decided to use a Burnt Sienna wash over the entire surface of the masonite. I find by using Burnt Sienna, it gives a little warmth to the paint colors I am using. It will also set the tonal values of the painting and it takes the glare out of the stark white of the gesso. I then take a cloth and wipe off some of the Burnt Sienna where the highlights would be on my subject matter. This is the only time I use an acrylic paint as it drys quickly, thinning it with water to a watery consistency. 

     Once the wash is completely dry I am ready to apply the base colors within the background and the wolf, blocking in the light and the dark. I am purposely leaving out the base color of the leaves and pine tree branches as I want the fur of the wolf to show through them. Since I will be painting a 2nd. and possibly a 3rd. layer of fur, I am going to wait on painting the foreground until the layers are completed.

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​     Now that my colors of the background and the wolf are blocked in I am ready to paint the 2nd. coat of fur.

     In my next post I will show the 2nd. and 3rd. layer of fur and foreground colors, so check back soon. Also, please feel free to leave any comments or questions!