Tomas Plekanec Painting

Prior to Christmas I made a painting of the Montreal Canadians player, Tomas Plekanec, for a friend's present. This was a large painting that measured 42 x 51 cm. The image was based on a number of different reference photographs I had of Plekanec and then painted with water colors. 

Once I have the idea of what I want to draw /paint and how I am going to render it, I then block out the shapes. 

Then I start adding details in a light pencil. This varies between a 2H and a B pencil. 2H's are nice because they are light enough to not show behind the paint, but are unforgiving as it is a harder lead and hence can scar the paper if something needs to be redrawn a few times. B's are nice because they are softer and do not scar the paper, but on the downside they are darker and the lines can show through the paint. 

I begin painting the background and lightest colors first. Blue was the lightest color, and so was the first applied. Much of the background was to be quite dark, so much of this was left blank until the very end of the painting. (some of the photos were shot at an angle, which skews the images here).

Once the blue was laid down, Plekanec's face was tackled.

Red was laid down following the face. To build up the form of the uniform, red was first applied with lots of water added to the paint. Then, less water was added to the brush to give a deeper red. This added form to the jersey and indicated light sources. Blacks were also sparingly added and sometimes mixed with the red paint. 

Once Pleakanec was finished and the blacks had been fully added, the background was tackled, again starting from the lightest colors.

Lastly, touchups are added. I often leave a painting overnight and tackle it in the morning even if it appears to be finished that night. This provides distance from me and the painting, so that in the morning I approach it with fresh eyes. This helps in noticing flaws or things forgotten.