I plan to start my first figure soon. I have really enjoyed looking at this site the last few days or so and seeing what some of you are up too. I plan to do my Verlinden figure bust of Robert E. Lee. Some of you may have this one or have seen it before. I have some generic questions, where do I start?

The head and the bust are separate pieces. Does it matter if i start with the face or the hair, does it matter if I start to work on more then one area at a time? It seams like you guys only work on one spot. That is a far cry from my oil painting class days when our teachers severely emphasized we should work on the whole canvas at once. Get the whole thing going and not work on one area... Why is that different here?

I have several shades of flesh I believe from Vallejo I need to look for them. I got them last year at one of the shows. Yesterday I got three bottles at Time Machine in Manchester CT that I hope I can use for the coat... I purchased two bottles of 70905 Bluegrey and one bottle of 70990 Light Grey, will these colors work? Or should I get something different? How many coats should I put on once I get started. I understand the need for a base coat, what about subsequent coats of the same color, or is one enough?

Lastly for now and sorry this is so long but I want to get this right....

I found this painting of R. E. Lee and I can't figure somethings out....

http://www.locogringostudios.com/Robert-E-Lee-Portrait-Painting.html

I can't tell if the bowtie is black or navy blue, I assume its the former,I can't tell what color the vest is or the blouse underneath.....

Also with the hair/beard should I start with black and then build up layers of silver and white to create the right look? Or is there a better way to go?

I know its a lot but I got to start somewhere.


Thanks... WOW now I can catch my breath......

Hi James.

I'm also new here although I've been in this hobby since 1996.

If i may offer my advice, my suggestion would be to start with the face as I personally find it will help set the character of the model. I always start with painting a basic flesh tone and do the eyes first. I find that if I get these right it then helps bring the rest of the face to "life".

I think each of us have our own methodology. Some people (especially those of us who work with oil paints) may work on several parts of the model at the same time. Like any project, in my opinion, a model's construction and painting will depend on good planning. There will be certain points of time when you find that you can only work on one part because it's demanding and requires a lot of effort. At other times it may be required to wait for the painting medium to dry.

I think you should dive into the project and let instinct and planning take over. We all started somewhere and it all comes together with experience, yet I think there are always certain points of time where even the most experienced modellers think "I should have done it differently"!!! The most important thing is to enjoy yourself!

For silver hair I always use a white base and then shade/highlight using sepia and black. Of course I use oil paints therefore I will let some other Planeteer advise on the use of acrylics.

I wish you all the best in your new chosen hobby and may it offer you as much enjoyment as it offers the rest of us

Nicolas

In my opinion is most important at a bust the face and most important in the face are the eyes!

You should begin with the eyes and when they have succeeded, paint on.
Here to the painting of the eyes there is a good Turorial of Gothicgeek...:

http://www.planetfigure.com/articles/eye_tutorial-mark_benette/eye-tutorial.html

Cheers

Do bear in mind that was just one approach. It is common these days (not in the past) but not everyone paints this way today by any means - often single areas are worked to completion, or near to it, over a fairly basic underpainting, sometimes little more than a rough sketch in thinned umber.

Traditionally, there are also numerous versions of layering technique where the entire painting would be done in greys or a brownish monochrome, then each area individually glazed to add colour with some of the final touches added opaquely on top.

Bottom line is there's no one way that's best. It's partly what you're taught, partly what you're used to and partly what seems to fit the subject at hand.

Personally I would nearly always start a bust by painting the face (it's common practice in modelling to paint "skin-out") and do the eyes last. Although I would finish the flesh areas before moving on you can always return to a completed area if the colouring has to be adjusted or you need to add more contrast, once you can see it in context.

I wouldn't undercoat or prime something in black that'll eventually end up light in colour, although many modellers do work this way. Again, it's up to the individual. Myself I'd usually undercoat the area in a medium or light grey and work up , but sometimes I'd start with a white or off-white and work mostly down.

Einion

Place some pictures that may be useful for painting

Thanks for all your very informative and valuable input... It is most helpful.