HASHIM AKIB’s new series features exercises for
creating stylish, modern portraits. Here he shows how
to use vibrant colours without overpowering a paintingO
ne of the main issues when
painting any skin tone is the lack
of strong colour. White is generally
over-used to create pastel tints that can
look chalky and dull. For darker skin tones,
some may overuse Burnt Umber. Beginners
may even be tempted to plump for a tube of
Flesh Tint, which in no way is representative
of the multitude of real-life skin pigments.
Skin tones tend to look consistent from
distance and colour may come from an
accessory someone is wearing or a shotof colour in the background. On closer
inspection, skin has a variety of subtle
hues. These colours can be affected by
illness, bruising, light, temperature, or
reflected colour and can vary with age.
Initially it’s important to simply be open
to seeing these variations.
Painting portraits with acrylics can be
tricky. Whereas oils allow for excessive
blending and feathering, acrylics can
appear flat if the pigment is overworked.
In order to retain colour brilliance, try to bemore decisive with your brushstrokes. This
can be difficult when a certain amount of
accuracy is involved, so it may be that you
make allowances for the drawing in order to
create a more effective overall painting.
Some of my favourite portraits bear less of
a resemblance to the sitter, but it’s normally
the case that the reference material isn’t on
show with the painting. Commissions often
require an accurate representation but, if
you’re starting out, get lots of practise
under your belt before worrying about this.- Vibrancy
PORTRAIT EXERCISES