BEST Secrets of Skin Tones Without Mud in Oil Painting | 10 Tips for Beginners + palette practice., by Sergei Gusev on YouTube. 37 min 24 s.
- Video length
- 37 min 24 s
- Time to do it
- 30 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 9
What you need
Steps
Lay out your pigments in a row: white, yellow ochre, a warm red, burnt sienna and a blue. Keep them apart so you can pull small amounts with the knife.
Start with a base of white and add a little yellow ochre. This gives the light, warm foundation most skin tones sit on.
Add a touch of red to the base to bring in the flush of skin. Mix small amounts at a time so you do not overshoot.
Warm the mix with a little burnt sienna for mid tones and shadow areas. Keep the light base separate for highlights.
Cool the shadows with a tiny amount of blue, added sparingly. Too much blue is the fastest way to make skin look grey and muddy.
Mix each tone with a clean knife and wipe it between colours. Dirty tools carry old pigment into the next mix.
Test each mix on your canvas as a small swatch. Compare it next to the previous tone to check the value and warmth.
Adjust by adding only one pigment at a time. Change the value with white or sienna, then the temperature with red or blue.
Build a small palette of light, mid and shadow tones before you paint the face. Keep them in separate piles on the palette.
Tips and common mistakes
Mix with a palette knife rather than a brush so pigment stays clean and does not get pushed into the bristles.
Add dark pigments to light mixes in tiny amounts; it is much easier than lightening a mix that has gone too dark.
Keep your light, mid and shadow piles apart on the palette so they do not blend into one muddy puddle.
Work in good light and check your swatches against the reference, not from memory.
Questions
Which colours do I need to start mixing skin tones?
A basic set of titanium white, yellow ochre, a warm red, burnt sienna and a blue covers most skin tones. You can add more pigments later as you get comfortable.
Why do my skin tones turn grey or muddy?
Usually too much blue or dark pigment, or mixing with a dirty brush. Add cool colours in tiny amounts and clean your tools between mixes.
Can I use this method with acrylics?
Yes, the same mixing logic works with acrylics. Just work faster or use a retarder, since acrylics dry quicker than oils.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
