Sessions 2 and 3: My notes on painting the Black Madonna of Czestochowa icon at the Uniting Church Icon School, Melbourne

 

 My Icon after Sessions2 and 3 (under two different light sources):  

 

Reference images:.

  

My Icon after Session 1:

 

 Pigments used:

(Langridge colours) (NB: The manufacturers have issued is a long and detailed safety sheet on how to use and store each of these pigments).

1.       Yellow ochre

2.       Terre verte (a brownish colour)

3.       Ercolano Red

4.       Ultramarine Blue

5.       Burnt umber

6.       Yellow oxide

7.       Unbleached titanium

8.       Titanium white

9.       Raw umber green

10.   Mars Black

11.   Pale gold

12.   Chromium oxide (which is an opaque green)

Paint the base skin of the Madonna and Christ Child

16.  (This step follows the 15 earlier steps mentioned in the post above).  In a ceramic palette, mix a hefty pinch of Yellow Ochre, and tiny pinches of Terre Verte, Ercolano Red and Titanium White with tempera, using a pestle to ensure that the pigment and tempera blend well. Adjust the proportion of pigments until you get a dark skin tone.

17. Dip a brush into the mixture and then, “dry” it 17 times along the side of the palette, then paint the first coat on the skin of both the Madonna and the Christ Child. Allow the coat to dry for a few hours (ideally overnight) before attempting to layer on additional coats. The first coat is likely to be fairly transparent. That is OK. Repeat the same technique (of drying the brush before applying the paint) for each additional coat. Multiple coats maybe required to get a believable base skin tone.

Paint the skin tone shadows on both figures

18. Transfer some of the skin tone mix prepared in step 16 to a new well in the palette, add Burnt Umber, mix well, dilute if need be. Use this mix to paint the shadow areas of the skin (in both figures). Apply additional coats if needed taking care to ensure that each coat has dried completely before applying the next one.

Paint the skin tone highlights on both figures

20. Transfer some of the skin tone mix prepared in step 16 to a new well in the palette, add Titanium White, mix well, dilute and use this mix to paint the highlights on the skin of both figures.   Apply additional coats if needed taking care to ensure that each coat has dried completely before applying the next one.

Colour the garment of the Christ Child

21.  (This step follows the 15 earlier steps mentioned in the post above).  In a ceramic palette, mix a hefty pinch of Ercolano Red with tempera, using a pestle to ensure that the pigment and tempera blend well

22. Dip a brush into the mixture and then, “dry” it 17 times along the side of the palette, then paint the first coat on the garment of the child Jesus. Allow the coat to dry for a few hours (ideally overnight) before attempting to layer on additional coats. The first coat is likely to be fairly transparent. That is OK. Repeat the same technique (of drying the brush before applying the paint) for each additional coat. Four or more coats maybe required.

Colour the garment of the Madonna

23. In a separate well in the ceramic palette, mix a few hefty pinches of Ultramarine Blue with a tiny pinch of Burnt Umber and a few drops of tempera. Blend well using a pestle and dilute with a few drops of water if need be.

24. Paint the first coat on the Madonna, taking sure to “dry” the brush (17 times) on the side of the palette before use. Once the coat is dry apply additional coats as needed. After completing all the blue coats on the garment of the Madonna, let it dry overnight.

Paint the Fleur-de-lis (stylized lily flower) on the garment of the Madonna

25. In a separate well in the ceramic palette, mix Yellow oxide and Unbleached Titanium with tempera to form a pale-yellow-gold paint.

26. Practice painting the fleur-de-lis motif.(See above)

27. Once you have decided on the size and version of the motif you wish to paint on the Madonna’s garment, mark the spots (on the garment) where you wish to paint the motifs.

28. Using a Size 0 brush, paint the fleur-de-lis on the Madonna’s garment. Let it dry overnight

Paint the eyes of the Madonna and the Christ Child

29. Paint the irises (eyeballs) of both figures with a burnt umber and tempera mix

30. Mix Titanium White with a few grains of Raw Umber Green and tempera. Mix well using a pestle. Use the mix to paint the whites of the eyes of both figures.

31. Paint the pupils of both figures with a Mars Black and tempera mix.

Paint the shadows and highlights on the garment of the Christ child

32. Paint the shadows on the Christ Child’s garment with a mixture of Ercolano Red, Burnt Umber and tempera.

33. Paint the highlights on the Christ Child’s garment with a mixture of Ercolano Red, Titanium White and tempera.

Paint the shadows and highlights on the border of the garment of the Madonna

34. Paint the shadows on the border of the Madonna’s garment with a mixture of Ercolano Red, Burnt Umber and tempera.

35. Paint the highlights on the border of the Madonna’s garment with a mixture of Ercolano Red, Titanium White

Paint the background of  the icon

36. Mix Chromium Oxide with Ultra Marine Blue, tempera and water, until you achieve the background colour that you want (test the mix colour on a sheet of white paper before adding each additional colour).

37. Use this mix to paint the background of the icon. You can apply this quite thickly if you prefer an opaque effect, else apply very thin layers (if you prefer a more translucent effect). Allow each coat to dry before applying the next. You will need multiple coats.

Paint the blush over the skin of both figures

38. Mix small amounts of Ercolano Red with water, until you achieve the blush tone that you want (test the mix colour on a sheet of white paper before adding each iteration of Ercolano Red). Make sure that the

39. Use this mix to paint the blush onto both figures

Re-touch the outlines and shadow areas on the skin of both figures

40. Mix small amounts of Burnt Umber and tempera with water, until you achieve the depth of colour that you want (test the mix colour on a sheet of white paper before use)

41. Use this mix to touch-up the outlines and shadow areas of both figures

Paint the hair of the Christ Child

42. Mix different dilutions of Burnt Umber with tempera and water, (test the mix colour on a sheet of white paper).

43. Use these mixes to paint the hair of the Christ Child, making sure that you add highlights and shadows by varying the tones.

Paint the gold borders on the on the garments of both figures and the motifs on the Christ Child’s garment

44. Paint the gold borders on the garments of both figures with a mixture of Pale Gold, egg tempera and vodka (which is necessary for the pigment to dissolve) – it will pool and separate if you just use tempera.

45. Use this mix to paint the motifs on the Christ Child’s garment and also the borders on the garments of both figures.

Paint the gold and red striations on selected areas of the garment borders of both figures

46. Mix Ercolano Red and tempera. Dilute if need be and use this to paint striations on selected areas of the garment borders of both figures.

47. Use the Pale Gold mix prepared in step 44 to paint striations on selected areas of the garment borders of both figures.