Translucence and Reflection In Oil, Step-by-Step

In the 1930’s Robert and Sonia Delaunay blazed a trail toward understanding  the properties of  translucence and opacity in layered colors. Other Bauhaus artists like Johannes Itten or Joseph Albers simultaneously considered the problem of color perception, especially concerning reflectance and transparency.  Sonia Delaunay and Joseph Albers both worked on the problem with arrangements of colored paper.  Sonia painted using observations from her colored paper experiments . She arranged color circles which were overlapped by other color circles. She rendered a sense of semi-opaque transparency by placing lighter colors next to darker colors. The effect was as if she had overlaid a semi-transparent film over the dark color. Here is an example of her work.

example1.

In the following  example of my work (  example 2, an unfinished painting) I  illustrate  how context can effect a sensation of  overlapping color . The blue, lighter blue and  light opaque colors appear to rest in between  and, on a surface( imitating the role of reflecting water) from which grow amber verticals(sea grass).  But, the painting process worked in reverse. First, I applied the amber/brown  glaze color to a sheet of aluminum and then later applied the blue and opaque light variations.  I follow a similar process in example 2a.

example 2.

example 2a.

In the next series of illustrated steps you may see how I progress through illusions of near-to-far, and above-to-below in  the perception of  water’s translucence and reflectance. In an earlier blog post I demonstrated a similar process in watercolor. Here is a step-by-step example in oils. I begin with a remnant excised from an older painting( example 3). The striated pale cool colors offer a foil for the color I will place on top.  As with any under-painted color  they  help build a unified sensation of tone.  The next example (example 4)shows how I begin to block in the painting using a soft inverted “v” design . The  apex of the ” v” points toward the infinite distance.   I start by smearing dark areas of paint to evoke the general design shape and initial sensations of texture. The palette is ultramarine blue, transparent red oxide, gamboge yellow, carmine lake, and later I mix with white, vermillion and  a  cyan blue.

example 3. (substrate of pre-painted aluminum)

example 4.  (initial laying in)

In the next steps ( example 5 and 6) I  further spread out uneven territories of color in the forward area . The forward (lower) area sustains a blurred effect to suggest motion and the differences between light and dark (submerged area) are not allowed to be either as bright or as dark as in the adjacent bordering  rocks  which are above the surface. I  have begun to apply opaque  (white mixed) paint to the back areas of the tidal pool and, to the distant water surface and sky. Remember that the water reflects the sky so, they should coordinate.  I  also have carved more explicit shapes from the rocks to create an interesting rhythmic  silhouette which tapers into the distance.

example 5.

example 6. ( more laying in of opaque light blue)

In the last example, I  introduced some lighter (but not too light, not as light as the  sky-reflecting surface or the light reflecting areas of the rocks) horizontal swirl movements. These are foreshortened “s” shaped strokes whose undulating character suggest a movement toward the back of the image.  The lighter in value they are the closer they appear to the surface. They  lose acuity and value as they weave back  into the picture.  The pale pink of the sky is reflected in the furthest area of the tidal pool and becomes both bluer and deeper as the sky-reflected area moves forward to the viewer. The transition between the sensation of translucence to impenetrable opacity on the water should be gradual and barely perceptible.

example 6.

Reflectance has a variety of characteristics. Colors in reflected areas are not as saturated as the color that causes the reflection.  The loss of acuity along the edges of a reflection indicates the extent of the movement of the watery surface.  You can see this in my final example of  reflections on  wet streets in Times Square.

example 7.  .

I  want to invite you to two events. First, I welcome you  to an exhibition of my work which opens Friday, March 9, 2012 at the Susan Powell Gallery in Madison, Connecticut. Secondly,  I am giving a lecture on Color, its perception, meaning, use and history at the Silvermine Art Center in New Cannaan, Ct. on Sunday, March 9, . 2012 at 4:30 PM. call  the  Silvermine Art Center 203 966 6668 If you wish to attend.  If you are interested in further reading on the subject of transparent color I suggest  the books of Faber Birren or Joseph Albers.

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