tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post4700691381741559430..comments2024-03-28T16:36:12.581-04:00Comments on Gurney Journey: Harold Speed Discusses GroundsJames Gurneyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01870848001990898499noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-37433145196688542212016-06-25T15:15:05.046-04:002016-06-25T15:15:05.046-04:00I love painting on a toned ground. I use a combo o...I love painting on a toned ground. I use a combo of black and white gesso, to give a medium gray tone. I sometimes will use acrylic paints to give another earth tone, being careful not to add too much to the gesso for binding purposes.<br /><br />The concern I have with using a turpentine-thinned color as an "imprimatura" is something I didn't even really know about until this year(!): the problem of under-binding<br /><br />Paint will flake off, if it doesn't have a physical or chemical bond to the layer below, and they've found that if your first layers are TOO washy or "thin", they won't bind to the ground sufficiently, nor will subsequent paint layers bind to them. <br /><br />Here's a great video about ACRYLIC underbinding, but the same thing applies to oils.<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKNpKUK4lMc<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-23579091300210101212016-06-24T16:30:03.310-04:002016-06-24T16:30:03.310-04:002. Trying to confirm with myself how much I agree ...2. Trying to confirm with myself how much I agree or disagree with Speed regarding tone for ground. If it is known that oil paint becomes darker and more transparent with time, then given what we know about how complements cause a vibrancy in our eyes, doesn't it make sense to attempt to anticipate the final color and transparency in the passages of a painting by underpainting differing color passages with their differing complements? Plus, Speed doesn't give us a rationale for the warm undertone of ivory black and raw umber. Why not a cool undertone? And if white is the presence of all frequencies of light reflecting off of a ground and through our paint, why isn't a neutral gray preferred or a solid black ground, wherein the logic would be that the frequency of the hue coming off our brush would have no competition from underlying layers, no combinations to try and control. The under tone sets the key and the warmth or coolness of a painting, perhaps among other things. So, I'm not certain there is a 'recommended' way, as Speed is providing, unless it's just a starting point for students. There are just 'ways' depending on what you are after in a particular painting.Sescohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01857017166141673658noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-84183982180619172652016-06-24T12:53:02.346-04:002016-06-24T12:53:02.346-04:00OK, thanks for the info. I am trying to learn more...OK, thanks for the info. I am trying to learn more about oil painting. So is an unvarnished oil painting considered a matte surface? Considering that I heard an oil painting needs to dry for 6 months-1 year before it should be varnished, it seems like a complicated thing to varnish an oil painting. Do you varnish every oil painting you do? And how long do you wait before you varnish them?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17568134922097906207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-65348992072616806412016-06-24T12:33:19.724-04:002016-06-24T12:33:19.724-04:00Bob, I'm no expert on this, but I suppose it s...Bob, I'm no expert on this, but I suppose it stands to reason that a matte surface presents a more rough or porous outer layer that can attract dust and dirt, and that it isn't as easy to clean as the smoother, shinier surface of a varnished oil painting.James Gurneyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01870848001990898499noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2999230124118604245.post-14088578142458828912016-06-24T12:29:53.520-04:002016-06-24T12:29:53.520-04:00You said dry, matte surfaced paintings should be f...You said dry, matte surfaced paintings should be framed under glass. I never heard of that. Would you be able to explain more about that? All the paintings I see in museums and galleries are never under glass. What exactly is a matte surface?Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17568134922097906207noreply@blogger.com