Stage 1
The picture is sketched onto the canvas. This can be done in a number of ways: drawing freehand, tracing, by graph (dividing the photo into squares and then the same number of squares onto the canvas, enlarged to fit your canvas) and finally projecting - my preferred tool, most of the time, especially with big paintings. All of these artists' tools speed up the process and ensure your animals are anatomically correct.
Stage 2
I prefer to cover my canvas with a colour to break the stark white of the canvas. I normally mix raw sienna and burnt umber to get a warm earthy tone to work on.
Stage 3
This stage is done by blocking in the darker areas for the shadows and leaving the lighter areas for the sunlit parts of the painting. I then move on to blocking in the colours I will be using in the painting, following the same principle of light and dark. There is no detail at this stage.
Stage 4
The real work begins here. I add thin layers of paint, building up the piece. Finally, all the fine details are added until I am happy the work is complete. This painting took a month before I was satisfied it was finished!
120cm x 90cm Oils on canvas
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