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Using the Zorn palette for the first time

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With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, NAPA

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Steve - put it on the Gallery: maximum exposure required here!  No problem with copyright either - the original photographer went to his Reward long, long ago.  You've caught another aspect of this kid, whom I can think of objectively by now.  He was a sad lad - but not, crucially, all the time. 

Tessa Gwynne

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Catching up with this thread a little late, but this is my attempt at painting my grandson, now 18 months old and using the Zorn palette. I must admit I found it very difficult! 
IMG_6882

Paul (Dixie) Dean

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It’s beautifully painted Tessa. 

Colin Berwick

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A happy chappy. 
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Marjorie Firth

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I’ve commented on the gallery Tessa. Which were the difficult parts?

Denise Cat

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He looks really happy Tessa and a good attempt.

Tessa Gwynne

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Thanks all. Marjorie- I just found mixing the different skin tones difficult, but he is pretty pale anyway, goes with the hair colour!  I think you’ve got it sorted Denise. I’ll have another go sometime with an adult face, I do find small people quite difficult and obviously they aren’t going to sit for you!
IMG_8857

Marjorie Firth

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Tessa, two of my grandchildren have red hair and pale skin. For them I used alizarin crimson instead of cad red. It worked better.

Tessa Gwynne

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Thanks Marjorie, definitely worth knowing and I only chose cad red for the Zorn attempt. Might be interesting to try another with my usual palette.
With Sarah, Phil, Ellen, Rose the dentist, and the granddaughter whose name I forget.

Robert Jones, NAPA

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Zorn's palette was white (probably Flake), Vermilion, Yellow Ochre, and black.  I used Cadmium Red Light when I tried it, because I don't have Vermilion (other than in an ancient Hue tube, and Lord knows what that consisted of). I found it worked extremely well for adult flesh, but I don't know if it would be quite right for the softer tones of children's skin.  If I were going to try another red, it wouldn't be Alizarin Crimson, (PR 83) because for one thing it takes a long while to dry (in oil), and for another it's fugitive (in oil and watercolour) when used reduced, or in tints..... apart from which: I can't visualize what that would actually look like; I must try it and see.  Not sure I have any Alizarin - might try it with Quinacridone Rose (PV 19) if I can't find any by rummaging through my oldest paintbox. I wonder why - if it's possible to be specific - some find it particularly difficult; using too much of one colour, eg the yellow?  That certainly gave me some rather peculiar hues .... not using enough white?  Maybe it's more difficult with Titanium....... I think I'd say persist, on the whole: as I remember, the best hues can be got from concentrating on the white, and mixing the red and black into it, adding a smaller quantity of ochre.  The black and red alone make a very characteristic brown, which you can actually see in several of Zorn's portraits: he used it in the coat of one of his sitters (might even have been his self-portrait, I remember the colour more than the work.   Looking at your child portrait again - I do suspect that one of the issues is the white: Titanium is a good white, but it can produce a chalky effect.  Final thought - maybe try Cadmium Red Deep, rather than the lighter one, and rather than Alizarin or Rose/Madder/Quinacridone Rose or violet.... reason being, all the other colours are opaque, and Alizarin (and all versions of permanent rose) is transparent - would it have the body you need...?  Not with a lead white, I suspect; and with Titanium, I can see it running into stodge if you're not careful.  

Tessa Gwynne

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Thank you Robert for the detail. I shall try a few mixes with different reds to see how they look. I did use titanium white and somehow I seem to have accumulated several tubes of lamp black which I don’t normally use, but I think they have come from sets purchased for other colours! What do you mean by Alizarin being fugitive? I haven’t heard that term before in regard to paint.
IMG_8857

Marjorie Firth

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Is Aliz Crimson fugitive when mixed with other colours - it doesn’t seem so. I only have Titanium white and mixing white but they seem to work in flesh tones. It all depends, I would think, on the percentage of the other colours in the mix. These two egs below are of a granddaughter with very pale skin. I think you can detect the Aliz Crimson. 
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