7b 83-B 9597 A GUIDE FIGURE PAINTING WATER-COLOURS. WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND BRUSHWORK. S. T. WHITEFORD. LONDON : PUBLISHED BY GEORGE ROWNEY & CO., MANUFACTURING ARTISTS' COLOURMEN, 29, OXFORD STREET; and 52, RATHBONE PLACE. LONDON : PRINTED BT HENDERSON, BAIT, AND FENTON, 23, BEBNRRS STREET, W. PREFACE. That it is difficult to convey by writing, instructionb in any art, is generally acknowledged ; and the difficulty is increased when, as in the present case, extreme brevity and conciseness are essential. No book, however explicit its directions, can fill the place of a master ; but many persons desire to test their capabilities and make some advance before entering into engagements with a teacher, and to others who are receiving lessons a manual is often useful for reference during the absence of the master. To such students these pages are offered ; and that they may in some measure contribute to render more general the cultivation of an art that has so many attractions, is the earnest wish of the writer. Warwick Gardens, Kensington. CONTEI^TS. PAGE Preface ... 3 Introductory Remarks 7 CHAPTER I. Choice of Materials ... 10 CHAPTER 11. Of Painting in Pure and Trassparext Colours ... 22 CHAPTER HI. The Use of Chinese White or Body-Colour ... 37 CHAPTER IV. Figure Painting 44 DESCRIPTION OF PLATES. PLATE I. PAGE Fig. 1 Colour Graduated at once 24 Fig. 2 Tint Flattened by Cross Hatching 21) Figs. 3, 4 ... Cross Hatching, first and second stages 29 Fig. 5 Cross Hatching following a Curve ... ... 29 Fig. 6 Cross Hatching combined with Stippling ... 30 PLATE II. Figs. 1, 2, 3. Blotting 31 Fig. 4 Dragging 32 Fig. 5 Scumbling ... ... ... ... ... 32 Figs. 6, 7, 8. Loose Hatching and Cross Hatching 29 Fig. 9 Cross Hatching, to show clearly the angle at which lines should cross ... ... ... 29 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAmimG m water-colours. INTRODUCTORY REMARKS. From the various Handbooks that have already appeared, the art student and amateur may readily obtain rudimen- tary knowledge of the Practice of Pictorial Art in most of its branches ; and of those general Principles, intimate acquaintance with which is essential to successful progress or intelligent appreciation of the art-work of others. The distinctly English art of Painting in Water-Colours has, however, been hitherto treated of chiefly with reference to landscape, to which class of subject the art was pecu- liarly suited, when practised according to the earlier system. The increasing popularity of water-colour draw- ings, and the taste for vivid realization and elaborate finish, have brought about many changes. The artist has now at his disposal materials of such excellence that but little room remains for improvement; and manipulative processes have been introduced, that make it possible to combine with the characteristic excellences of water- 8 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING colour, that degree of solidity and force which was felt to be requisite in figure subjects and representations of still-life. It appeared to the Publishers (Messrs. Rowney & Co.) that, under these circumstances, there was yet room for such a Handbook as the present, to be prepared expressly with a view to assisting those who desire to make Figure Painting in Water-Colour their study. In the completion of this work, the writer has been indebted for valuable information on several points to other members of the profession, and avails himself of this opportunity to acknowledge their courtesy. Students have generally a preference for some particular style and special class of subject. Examining the works of those artists with whom they feel themselves to be most sympathetic, they desire to know by what technical means their various efiects are produced. Once informed as to these methods, they are prepared to render pic- torially, with a facility which practice will continually increase, their own impressions of nature. In time, noting and appreciating the deficiencies and merits of individual styles, they may form one for themselves. The art of drawing the Figure has already been made the subject of a Handbook, by Mr. G. E. Hicks, and at least some degree of proficiency is assumed to have been obtained by those for whom the present work is intended. In the following pages the modern practice of painting in Water-Colours is fully explained, and such special directions given as will, it is hoped, lessen the difficulties encountered by the student when first attempting Figure IN WATER-COLOURS. 9 Painting in Water-Colours. Positive rules are impossible, but suggestions are offered on the treatment of flesh and drapery with reference to colour and texture ; and hints are added on the management of back-grounds and accessories. 10 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING CHAPTER 1. CHOICE OF MATEEIALS. The first point demanding the attention of learners is the selection of materials. Those positively requisite at starting are comparatively few and inexpensive ; but with progressive study new wants will be developed, and it will be found that almost all have been thought of and met by some clever invention or adaptation. PAPERS. The best papers are Whatman's seamless "Not," i.e., not hot pressed. The size most used is Imperial, of which sheets measure 30 by 22, and weigh, if thin, 901bs. per ream, if thick, 140 lbs. per ream. Papers with a ribbed or lined surface are objectionable, giving a coarse look to the drawing. If a rougher paper is required, or for large drawings, " Antiquarian " may be used. To find the right side of the paper, hold it up to the light, when the maker's name will appear. If the name is not reversed, put marks on that side which is towards you, as the other side is imperfect — -defects having been removed by erasure. boards. The paper must be strained for use upon a board. It is well to have boards suited to the whole, half, and IN WATER-COLOURS. 11 quarter sheets, according to the intended size of the drawing. Deal boards are the best, especially when thin paper is used, presenting a less harsh and unyielding surface than mahogany. They must be clamped or panelled to prevent warping. To strain the paper, see that the board is about IJ inches smaller every way than the paper to be strained upon it. Lay the paper upon a perfectly clean table or board, use tepid water and a carefully washed soft sponge. First sponge the right side of the paper lightly over, wetting the whole surface ; turn it and sponge the wrong side very freely. Roll up the sheet loosely and wrap it in a damp linen cloth ; leave it for a time, ranging from five to ten minutes according to the thickness of the paper. When rather, but not very limp, unroll and lay it down wrong side uppermost. Have ready some thoroughly boiled rather stiff paste. Lay the deal board upon the paper and cut away a rectangular piece from each corner. With a soft cloth remove the excessive moisture from the margin that is to be turned down. Lay the paste evenly with a soft hog-hair brush, and turn over each edge in succession, pressing it firmly down upon the board. Finally pass the sponge lightly over the face of the paper, and suffer it to dry gradually. Whilst drying, the board must not be stood upon its edge lest the moisture drain into the lower part, nor should it be exposed to a fire or the sun, lest the paper should contract too violently and become detached or tear at the edges. Sometimes colour works out from tables or boards, staining and spoiling the paper; if the size admit, it may 12 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING be conveniently wetted on a large japanned tea-tray. It is not a good plan to strain several sheets of paper one over the other on the same board ; but one sheet may with advantage be left always on the board, and the paper strained for use over that. BRUSHES. The most serviceable brushes for Figure painting are tlie red sable in quills; for general use the best sizes are large goose, and small or middle swan; the hair should come readily to a very fine point. The form, when wet, should be such, that a line being imagined down the middle, the curves on each side exactly corre- spond. For large washes a flat dyed sable at least f of an inch broad is required, and a round sable is also very useful when it is necessary to use a large pointed brush. Besides these, a large camel's hair softener must be provided, and a few soft hog hair brushes with ground tips for partially or entirely removing colour, giving texture, &c. For hatching (see page 29), a brush from which the very fine point is worn away will be found the best ; with a fine point the hatching is apt to become harsh and wiry, but a brush of which the point is very much worn is of no use. A common defect in brushes is that the hair is inserted too far in the quills ; this brings the bend or swell of the brush too near the quill : the result is that, except when very wet, the hair divides or opens out. IN WATER-COLOURS. 13 COLOURS. Of the very large number of colours at present offered to the artist, those presently to be named and de- scribed are all that can be required. The arrangement followed is that of Field, whose " Chromatography " Mr. RufcsKiN recommends to all who intend to study paint- ing seriously. Notices of most pigments will also be found in that valuable little work by the late Mr. Fairholt, " The Dictionary of Art Terms." In prepar- ing a list of reliable colours it is not always easy to speak positively as to the want of permanency assigned to cer- tain pigments — so very much depends upon the manner in which they are used — the colours with which they are combined, and the treatment the drawings meet with in which they are employed. The Chromes, for example, are certainly objectionable, turning black under the influence of impure air ; yet valuable drawings might be instanced in which the lightest Chromes have been used, and in which no apparent change has taken place after the lapse of many years. So, too. Indigo is considered very fugi- tive, and is supposed to have the effect of detaching other colours from the paper ; yet some artists state that they have used Indigo largely for many years without any injurious results, except when it had been mixed with Indian Red. In the case of drawings of so little value that they are treated with no care, it is perhaps immate- rial whether the colours fade or not. Valuable drawings, though of course liable to accidents, will almost certainly be so protected, as to suffer from none of the inflj^Ances 14 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING that would seriously affect the carefully prepared pig- ments now in use. WHITE. The excellent pigment known as Chinese White, termed also "Body- White," is an oxide of zinc. After long trials it appears to be quite permanent and in every way satis- factory. YELLOWS. Cadmium. — ^The light variety is most useful ; it is per- manent, and is the best colour to mix with Carmine or Mad- der Carmine when a clear and powerful Orange is required. Indian Yellow, — Permanent, but is not so mixed with Carmine ; both this and the preceding are improved by mixture with Gamboge. Gramhoge is tolerably permanent, and, from its gummy nature, increases the permanency of other pigments, when mixed with or passed over them. Yellow Ochre. — The ochres are all of an earthy nature, deriving their colour from iron. They are quite perma- nent, rather opaque, but extremely useful pure and in combination. Raw Sienna. — Also an earth coloured by iron ; very permanent and useful ; less pure in hue, but more transparent than Ochre. Lemon Yellow. — Quite permanent. It is really a delicate primrose colour, and must not be confounded with Light Chrome, sometimes called Lemon Chrome, and exactly of the same hue as the fruit from which it is named. Lemon Yellow gives very valuable Greens mixed with Cobalt or Antwerp Blue. IN WATER-COLOURS. 15 REDS. Vermilion (Sulphuret of mercury). — Very permanent. Is too heavy and opaque in its full strength, and should be mixed with or passed over a tint of Gamboge. Scarlet Vermilion is a clearer and more brilliant colour than the last, and equally permanent. Indian Red (Peroxide of iron). — Valuable for Greys, and generally very useful. The best inclines in tone to Purple, and is quite permanent. Veiietian Red inclines to Orange, and is a safe and valuable colour. Light Red is closely allied to the above, but is redder and deeper in tone. It is generally prepared from Yellow Ochre by burning. Carmine, — Prepared from the cochineal insect. This is so beautiful a colour that one scarcely knows how to dispense with it ; yet under the action of light, either alone or in compound tints, it rapidly fades away. Being so fugitive, even if used in full strength, its lighter tones are quite useless. Fine drawings are frequently met with which are almost colourless in parts where this treach- erous colour has been used ; and this change had taken place after the lapse of only two or three years. A little Carmine mixed with Madder Carmine gives brilliancy to the Madder, and is protected by the viscid nature of the latter. Carmine, when mixed for Orange hues, should be worked with and thickly glazed over with Gamboge. Madder Carmine^ extracted from the Madder plant, is a very rich and quite permanent colour. Its viscous nature is its chief fault, and this applies also to 16 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING Rose Madder^ a clearer and more delicate preparation of the last-named pigment. If required of full strength, these colours should be rubbed and used before they have dried upon the palette. BLUES. Ultramarine is prepared from Lapis Lazuli. This is an invaluable pigment, affording a fine Blue colour, inclining slightly to Purple. It is quite permanent, and forms, in combination, excellent Purples, Greens, and Greys. French Ultramarine^ or French Blue, is a beautiful Blue, with a Purple tone. It works well, forms good Greys and Purples, and is permanent. Cobalt is a mineral Blue and very useful, being quite permanent and working more evenly, especially in large washes, than real Ultramarine. Cobalt forms very clear Greys mixed with Light Red, and has the power of imparting a look of distance and atmosphere. It is therefore of great use in back-ground tints. The ore from which Cobalt is obtained is found in large quantities in the iron mines of Sweden. It was formerly supposed to be useless, and the miners, who had the trouble of removing it, attributed its presence to the Kobolds — mischievous gnomes who w^ere believed to delight in harassing the invaders of their subterranean domains. Hence the corrupted term Cobalt, i.e., Ko- bold — ore. Smalty a preparation of Cobalt, is a rich Blue, but of slight body and difficult to work. Prussian Blue, — Prussiate of iron : This invaluable IN WATER-COLOURS. 17 colour, as formerly prepared, was very fugitive in light tints especially. Messrs. Rowney, having devoted par- ticular attention to its improvement, have succeeded in providing a Prussian Blue of the highest quality, which has been severely tested and proved to be permanent. Antwerp Blue resembles the above, but is clearer, has less strength, and inclines in hue to green. ORANGE. Orange Chrome^ the most reliable of the chromates of lead, is a very useful colour when it can be used with Gamboge or glazed over with Madder Carmine or Gam- boge. The late Mr. W. Hunt used this colour constantly, mixed with or worked over white ; also with Madder for rich complex Reds. No injurious results are as yet observable in his drawings. Burnt Sienna^ prepared from Sienna earth is quite permanent, gives a fine transparent brown mixed with Violet Carmine. GREENS. Oxide of Chromium is a permanent and beautiful Green, and may be used safely alone or in mixed tints. Emerald Crreen. — A reliable and very useful colour. Prussian Green is of doubtful permanency, but is often useful when it can be protected by glazing, or in combination with other colours. PURPLES. Burnt Carmine is a very deep and valuable colour, but more durable used in full strength than in lighter tones. 6 18 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING Purple Lake is extremely powerful and useful. Used in considerable body/' says Field, " it will, under favourable circumstances, last a long time. Purple Madder is rather sober but very useful, being quite permanent, like other pigments prepared from the Madder plant. Violet Qarmine. — A cool, clear, and beautiful colour? valuable in mixed tints, but not very permanent. CITRINE. Brown Pinky though certainly fugitive, can scarcely be dispensed with. Is more permanent when worked with other colours, by stippling and hatching, than when applied alone in a wash. RUSSETS. Haw Umber y being an ochreous earth, is quite perma- nent, and works very freely. Madder Brown is a most useful colour, possessing every quality of the best pigments. OLIVE. Olive Green is an artificial Green of great beauty and value. BROWNS. Vandyke Brown is a rich, permanent Brown, but, from its bituminous character, does not work so well as Burnt Umber. It gives a fine Neutral Green, or deep Olive mixed with Antwerp Blue and a little Indian Yellow. Burnt Umber is preferred by many to Vandyke Brown, it works more freely and is quite permanent. IN WATER-COLOURS. 19 Sepia is prepared from the dark colour obtained from the sepia or cuttle-fish. It is a fine but rather heavy Brown, works well, and is quite permanent. BLACKS. Lamp Black is an intense and permanent Black. Blue Black is a less dense pigment, is also permanent, and is of great use for mixed Greys, &c. For out-door work, or when much colour is to be used quickly, moist colours are invaluable. Few would care to emulate the patience of the late Mr. W. Hunt, who never used any but the dry cake colours, so highly did he value perfect purity of tint. This he considered impossible to be obtained from a much-used moist colour box, or, as he termed it, Smudge box." For many reasons, a small box, divided for twenty-four half-pans and four quarter- pans, will be found most convenient for work of any kind. The colours are put direct into the divisions ; the china pans only take up space, add w^eight, and often fall out. The half-pan spaces may be filled with Lamp Black, Sepia, Vandyke Brown. Antwerp Blue, French Ultramarine, Cobalt. Prussian Green, Olive Green, Emerald Green. Madder Brown, Purple Lake, Burnt Umber. Indian Red, Light Bed, Orange Vermilion. Burnt Sienna, Raw Sienna, Yellow Ochre. Cadmium, Indian Yellow, Gamboge. Lemon Yellow, Orange Chrome, Violet Carmine. The quarter-pan divisions may contain Burnt Carmine, Carmine, Madder Carmine, and Oxide of Chromium. An end division will hold a tube of Chinese White. b2 20 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING The box has a double flap on one side, affording a very convenient palette, and the outer enclosing lid is divided into wells in the usual way. A moist colour box, after use, should be carefully cleaned, a drop of water put upon such colours as seem to be hardening, and the lid kept shut. When the colours have become very dirty, they are most readily cleaned by putting the box under water with the colours downwards, and shaking it freely for a minute or two. It should then be drawn out face downwards, turned quickly over, and the water lightly dipped out of each division with a soft brush, Care should be taken not to suffer crumbs of bread, chip- pings or dust of lead pencils, or chalk, &c., to fall upon the moist coiours. All the materials required for so delicate an art should be kept scrupulously clean. The compressible tubes of moist colour are chiefly useful to provide a fresh supply for such a box as has been described. The tubes are inconveniently heavy, and the small apertures too often become choked with thick colour which is not always easy to clear away. Palette boxes are constructed with small wells to be filled with as much colour as is likely to be required for the day's sketching, but this quantity " is not one that can be mathematically determined, and the little colour in the wells probably soon becomes entirely sullied, whereas from the ordinary moist colour-box a pure tint can always be obtained with a little trouble. Those whose wish it is to produce anything but work of the slightest character — sketches by the way, jottings, blots of colour, &c. — will find it absolutely necessary to IN WATER-COLOURS. 21 have at their disposal some one room that may be dignified with the name of studio, and devoted solely to purposes of art. There all professional paraphernalia may be gathered without risk of disturbance, a convenient light arranged, sketches, prints, &c., safely bestowed; and such objects as are prized for their colour and form so disposed, that the eye may rest on agreeable and instruc- tive combinations. To such a room, an easel of some sort is an almost indispensable accessory : That known as " Corbould's " is most perfectly suited for work in water colours ; the moveable desk allows the drawing to be at once inclined at any angle, and the tray, provided with a lid, forms a box in which colours, brushes, &c,, may be kept. As the hand should never rest upon the drawing whilst working, artists generally use a Mahl-stick. This word is often incorrectly written " Maul "-stick, being simply from the German Mahl-stock (Mahlen, to paint), as Easel is the German " Esel," an ass. After a little practice, the Mahh stick will be found an eflScient support, though rather difficult to use at first, especially when a touch is to be placed with great precision. The oblong china thumb palettes are the best for studio work. Those made of papier-mache are light, but the colours do not rub well on the japanned surface. A few miscellaneous articles should also be obtained at start- ing, such as saucers for washes, a 7" square, a foot rule, and a pair of dividers ; charcoal, black and white chalk, gum water and liquid oxgall, a small hand mirror, an eraser, and an ivory palette knife, which should be narrow and flexible. 22 A GUIDE TO riGURE PAINTING CHAPTER 11. OF PAINTING IN PUEE AND TRANSPARENT COLOURS. With a view to simplifying the subject, the present chapter is confined to the explanation of the modes of using Water-Colours, and the executive processes by which a drawing is brought to completion when recourse to Body- White is wholly avoided. For convenience sake, this may be termed the system of painting in pure and transparent colours, though it, of course, includes the occasional use of opaque colours and mixed tints. Work of this character is now found most often in landscape drawings, but should not the less be understood by a figure painter. As regards the relative worth of the two systems, one may fitly say, " Quot homines^ tot sentejitice.^^ Some artists use no Body- White under any circumstances ; others make that pigment the basis of all their work. A beginner must not think to decide without experiment and practice whether his ad- herence shall be given to one or the other system in their absolute or modified forms. Pure colours are applied in washes : by glazing, hatch- ing, stippling, and, finally, by dragging and scumbling. In the early days of our Water-Colour School, drawings of all classes of subjects were executed entirely by washes, IN WATER-COLOURS. 23 as they are now upon the Continent, where Water-Colour Art is gradually rising into favour and position. The results of this simple practice were often very agreeable, firm, clear, and expressive. The judicious employment of various kinds of work will, however, impart to a drawing a much more finished and rich appearance, but very much depends upon the size of the work, and the painter's appreciation of colour. When simple harmonies and effective contrasts are alone perceived, all, or nearly all the work may be executed in washes ; but when subtle refinements of colour are pursued, the necessity for delicate gradations compels the use of hatching, stippling, &c. For very large drawings these laborious processes can be used only at the cost of so much time, that weariness and disgust are too likely to ensue before the work even approaches completion. When colour, especially in any quantity, is to be applied in a wash, the paper must first be wetted and allowed to become nearly dry again. Only a sort of instinct, that results from practice, can give the power of deciding when the paper is exactly fit to receive colour, for it must be apparently, but not really, dry. The board must be slightly tilted, that the colour may be conveniently led downwards. The brush, charged with as much colour as it will hold, must then be carried quickly, but steadily, from left to right till the required space is covered. The brush should be so large, as not to require refilling till it has passed right across the paper. It may then be dipped again, care being taken that each time it is filled the tint be of the same strength. To ensure this, as much colour 24 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING must be mixed in a saucer as will prevent the possibility of the supply failing. The mixture must be stirred fre- quently, as some colours separate themselves and settle very quickly. It often happens that a minute fragment from a cake of colour, or other substance, is left by the brush in the midst of an evenly laid tint. To remove it at once would probably produce a smear, and cause delay at a critical moment. It should be left until the paper is quite dry, then taken off with the point of a penknife and the spot touched over with a little accurately matched colour. A small patch of colour may be gradated from dark to light, easily and at once. The strongest tint is laid on first, and, whilst it is wet, the brush, partly washed (so that it still holds a little colour), is used to lead it downwards through its first degrees of lightness. The brush is then washed again, and the tint carried on downwards, gradually paling, till the extreme of the range, from full strength to almost invisible colour, is attained. To lay a large gradated wash as, for instance, a sky, which is to be lighter towards the horizon, is a more diflBcult matter. The board must be reversed and tilted, and the first tint laid evenly and allowed to dry. The brush must then be filled with water only and passed over that part which represents the horizon line. Then a fresh tint is taken up, carried down from the part just wetted to the top of the drawing. The paper must then again dry anfl the process be repeated. The upper por- tion of each layer of tint is wetted and the succeeding wash must just meet the lower edge of the wet part so as riG- 2. I Cross /udx)/u?i^ com.dmed wM. stippling \ 3 . PIG 4 . ■" FI & 5 . Cross /lar^/Lor/^ ::,(r.rmjzg ca.rried^-Ciort/i&r. ■ ^rv^s. IN WATER-COLOURS. 25 to blend, and pass over all the tinted surface below. Thus the sky will be painted in a series of bands (not, however, harshly defined if the work is rightly done), of which the lowest (i.e,^ the top of the sky), will be the darkest, having been oftenest covered with tint. The drawing must then dry thoroughly, and, finally, the broad softener charged mth water should be worked lightly to and fro to blend the tints and give atmosphere. Although it is often necessary to mix colours — as, for instance, when an effect is to be rendered quickly — it will be found that far superior results are obtained by apply- ing washes of pure colour one over the other. Warm colours should be laid on first ; for example : to produce a grey tint the first w^ash may be of pale yellow ochre, the next of light red, and the last of cobalt — each, in turn, must dry so as not to mix at all with the succeeding. Prepared ox gall mixed with the water (one or two drops are enough in a tumblerful), will assist the even flow of the colours, without injuring even the most delicate, and correct any greasiness that the paper may have accidentally acquired. A large surface may also be covered with a flat or gra- dated tint by washing on the colours without much care, and, when dry, humoring it into evenness and required depth of tone by working over it with a soft hog hair brush, using the sable brush to touch on a little colour in one place, blotting paper or soft rag will take off a little in another, and so forth. Work of this kind is best adapted to produce dark effects. Mr. Ruskin says : — " Sponging and washing for dark atmospheric effects is 26 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING barbarous and mere tyro's work, though it is often useful for passages of delicate atmospheric light." The more general opinion is, that, whilst light effects may be most tenderly given by hatching and stippling subtly used over a washed tint, these processes are of no value for dark passages compared to liberal washing combined with the use of a strong-haired brush. A sponge need not be used at all, except for taking colour completely out. It should be observed that Mr. RuSKiN recommends the use of White" or " Grey paper as smooth as silk;" " Bristol board " or " Hot-pressed Imperial." The texture of such papers, though suitable for work in body colour, would render it impossible to spread a flat transparent tint evenly or obtain atmospheric effects by partially washing colour off again. The surface of a moderately grained paper, such as Imperial not hot-pressed, consists of minute elevations and depressions. The result of wash- ing is, that colour is removed from the raised points and left in the depressions, thus producing a sort of micro- scopic mottling. The effect upon the eye is that it seems no longer to rest upon a dead tinted surface of paper, but to penetrate into an atmosphere that renders hues more or less faint and delicate, and forms more or less defined as their distance varies. If, therefore, this effect is sought, obviously the surface of the paper, however much washed and worked over, must not be destroyed. There is a defect peculiar to oil painting, known as " paintiness ; " this indicates a commonness of surface and failure in the expression of the distinctive qualities of the various components of IN WATEE-COLOURS. 27 the picture. The corresponding defect in water-colour art is " paperiness," which implies that the mind is never deceived into forgetfulness, that the eye is resting upon mere paper, covered by a film of colour. This is obviated by the use of washing and manipulative processes ; but their abuse ends in the destruction of the natural surface of the paper. Its power of reflecting "light is then lost, and such faults follow as a sodden look, from over absorp- tion of colour, with a general wooUiness of texture. Attempts to remedy these by use of gums and mediums, or by minute stippling and hatching, are wholly useless. Large landscape drawings are generally washed by pouring or even pumping water upon them, and using the camel hair softener to assist the action of the running water. As the water falls lightly or heavily, little or much colour will be removed, and the stream from the jug or tap may be directed so as to act only on a given spot. In this way, bands of mist on the horizon, or passing across mountains, are washed out. Figure drawings are sometimes similarly treated, but only at an early stage of the work, as the figures and accessories are brought to completeness before the background. It need only be added that the expression of degrees of distance requires increasing decision in forms and hues, with more solidity of texture as the foreground is approached ; the most opaque colouring and marked outlines being, of course, reserved for objects that in nature would be very near the eye. Another kind of work in transparent colours is the blotting on of various tints, whilst the drawing is wet ; 28 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING it is valuable in landscapes, for distant thickly wooded masses, or for complex foregrounds, heather, rocks, &c. Many artists work a great deal in this way, and plans have been devised for keeping the paper wet. One is to fix it in a frame, so that both face and back are exposed ; and sponge over the back every now and then, as the work progresses. Another device has been suggested by a skilful amateur ; it is to wet the paper thoroughly and lay it flat upon a sheet of glass, which, for con- venience, might be framed and backed, the paper will become attached to the glass by exhaustion of the air, and remain w^et for a long time. For the back-ground of figure subjects, it is enough to pass a w^et brush over the surface and blot on quickly patches of such colours as will blend, and form an agree- ably broken tint, which shall harmonize with the general arrangement of colour and light and shade. The paper must be more or less damped, in proportion to the degree in which the tints are intended to mingle and run into each other. Washing down may afterwards be required, and greater strength attained, if necessary, by the repetition of the process. GLAZING Is a term intended to indicate covering any colour with another of greater transparency. It is, however, applied to the practice of laying colours of any kind completely over each other, or over Body-White. HATCHING Is a term borrowed from the art of the engraver to denote IN WATER-COLOURS. 29 the application of colour by a series of short parallel strokes ; sometimes they are rather wide apart, which is intimated by the expression ''open," or ''loose," hatching, sometimes close as to produce an uniform tint. Open hatching is used to give depth and transparency, and close hatching to give finish and evenness; both being always used over an underlying tint that has been washed or blotted on. Some artists employ hatching in all parts of their drawing ; sometimes working with loose and rather broad strokes, at others with lines as fine as scratches from the point of a needle. CROSS HATCHING. . By Cross Hatching is meant, primarily, hatching re- peated so that the second series of strokes crosses the first ; the lines may be straight or curved, should be evenly dis- posed, not too close to each other, and should cross at such an angle as to form diamond or lozenge shape., never square interspaces. Work of this kind is much used w ith a grey or greyish green, over flesh tints, for expressing the forms, or, as artists say, " modelling." The way in which the lines may be made to follow curves and assist in suggesting form, may be best learned by studying good line engravings, premising that strokes from the brush neither can nor should be so continuous or precise as those cut by the graver. Cross Hatching has been developed into a system that w^as brought to the highest perfection by the late Mr. W. Hunt. Its object is the production of gradated and compound tints by the interweaving of pure colour in a complicated net- work of 30 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING loose light strokes. The lines are crossed and recrossed till the required tint is nearly attained, and the remaining interstices are filled up by minute touches. A ground tint of appropriate colour must always be washed on first ; and upon the judgment shown in its selection, with regard both to hue and degree of depth, will, in a great measure, depend the success of the after-w^ork. Over this, when dry, faint colour is hatched with the flattened tip or side of the point of the brush. The touches should be rather broad and loose, and cross so as to leave open spaces like meshes of a net. When these are dry they are very lightly crossed again by others of a different colour, and this process may have to be repeated many times. The tints must not be used too dry, or the hatching will look harsh and wiry, nor too wet, for then the lines will be blotty, and the colours mix, instead of lying pure over each other. It is impossible to give rules as to what colours should be used. The broad principle is, that such hues are to be applied pure by hatching, as would, if mixed on the pa- lette produce the required tint, though in a degraded form. That colour which is hatched on most often will finally assert itself, just as it would if used in preponderating quantity in a compound tint formed by actual mixture. The underlying tint should be warm in tone, e.g.^ to produce purple, wash on light Madder Carmine, then hatch Blue over it ; for Green begin with Yellow, &c., &c. Cross Hatching is very difficult to describe and requires, beyond most kinds of execution, practice and experience before a masterly style can be acquired. Both IN WATER-COLOURS. 81 method and result may be studied with the greatest advantage in the later works of Mr. W. Hunt. STIPPLING. To stipple is to apply colours in small touches, with the point or flattened tip of the brush. When "extreme finish is required in small figure- drawings, the work is begun as usual with delicate washes, and carried on to completion, in every part, entirely by stippling. In such cases, small touches must be used as in the best minia- tures — not pin-point dot tings, which always give a dry and feeble look to the work. There is a kind of stippling which one may term blot- ting. Its peculiarity consists in the employment of colours, so diluted, that, when the brush touches the papers, a drop is left which dries with a defined edge. (See plate II., figs. 1, 2, 3.) In this way large or small touches, and even lines may be made. The brush must be "blotted" against the paper, or trailed along it, and the colours should run from it at once. Execution of this sort is peculiarly expressive of the lightness and crispness that characterize certain fabrics, such as silk, and the semi-transparent petals of many flowers. The late Mr. W. Hunt expressed a decided opinion that roses, and all flowers of similar texture, could only be imitated with a near approach to truth in this way. Difi*erent colours may be blotted, partly or completely, over each other, or placed delicately side by side, but each touch must be left as it dries, never altered or softened subsequently with the point of the brush. A few strokes 32 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING of this sort will sometimes give clearness and vivacity to a piece of work that looks dusty and common. DRAGGING. For dragging, the brush must be dry (or nearly so), and charged with thick colour. It is then drawn rather heavily and abruptly against the paper, so that the hairs divide and spread out, depositing the colour with a streaky or crumbled look. By this means, in foregrounds, mosses, rough rock surfaces, stiff spiky grass-stalks, &c., may be rendered. In Figure drawings, dragging is often used to give texture to draperies and accessories. SCUMBLING. Scumbling is also performed with a nearly dry brush, but the colour need not be used in so thick a state. The brush is held almost upright and pressed upon the paper so as to spread out the hairs like a fan. It is then worked to and fro, and leaves a powdery film of colour. Reference to the Plate that prefaces these pages will render much more intelligible the explanations that have been attempted of the complex varieties of execution. It should be borne in mind that brush-work, and most manipulative processes, may be so modified by different persons, or by the same person at different times, as to be often scarcely recognizable as essentially the same. The works of the early miniature painters, and even of those artists in Water-Colours, who subsequently first developed and improved their Art, but little resemble in effect the drawings of the present day. Yet it is certainly true in FZATH 11. PIG- 5 . ' • m WATEE-COLOURS, 33 a, sense, that, as Mr. Redgrave observes, " the various methods of our modern painters in Water-Colours were well known to their predecessors of the 17th and 18th cen- turies." The stippling and hatching in the early and later works of Mr. W. Hunt may also be instanced, as differing greatly in kind and effect, and as, at both periods, unlike the delicate work indicated by the same terms, which was introduced by Turner in his landscapes. Command over merely technical resources cannot be attained, except after many failures, and no opportunity for practice should be neglected by the student. There now remain to be considered the several me- thods of removing colour, of which sponging out naturally suggests itself first. When a large alteration is to be made, if the paper can be kept under a continuous flow of w^ater whilst the sponge is used, it may be most effectually washed, with the least amount of injury to its texture. The sponge should be rinsed now and then in clean water, and must be worked to and fro, never round and round, as by the latter move- ment, the surface of the paper is soon dragged up. Tepid water is sometimes required to remove colour, that lapse of time has rendered obstinately adherent. When a sponge is employed, it is often diflScult to avoid washing out or injuring portions of work adjacent to the defective spot. To prevent this, a sheet of stout glazed note-paper may be placed over the part that is to be preserved and held firmly down that, no water may find a way under its edge. If the work which is to be protected presents a varied outline, the note-paper can be shifted so as to c 84 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING follow it, and cover successive portions. When its edge becomes wet and soft, a new piece must be used, and any water that lias crept under the first lightly taken up with blotting-paper, some sheets of which should always be at hand. The sponge, moderately full of water, must be drawn firmly and carefully again and again in one direction, and always aioay from the note-paper. Any edges or spots of colour, unavoidably left, may be after- wards cleared away with a pointed brush and blotting-paper. If, amid work in an advanced state, a definitely shaped space is to be freed from colour, the safest course is to cut out of the note-paper a piece similar in form to the spot, which is to be altered. The resulting aperture must be fitted exactly over the part on which the water is to act, and kept in position by firm pressure. The board being laid flat, the sponge may then be safely used to lightly " dab " up the colours, or pressed upon the paper, and rocked to and fro, by which movement the colour will soon be brought away. It is often suflicient to work up colour with a brush, pushing it, so to speak, out of the paper, and clear it away with blotting-paper or soft rag. Some persons rely always upon this plan in preference to the more methodical course just described. Beginners, how- ever, escape much discouragement by proceeding slowly and systematically. Changes and corrections are a source of difiiculty even to artists of experience, and unless managed with much skill, seriously affect the quality of a drawing. Mr. Ruskin marks it as the privilege of a great artist, that he can sometimes get out of a difficulty with credit, or repent without confession." IN WATER-COLOURS. 35 Small lights, or details, are made out upon dark masses, by drawing their forms with a wet brush, and, after slight pressure with blotting-paper, rubbing them smartly with an old silk handkerchief, soft linen rag or wash- leather. They may also be scratched out with an eraser or round-pointed penknife. Ragged lights, such as foam crests on waves, are scratched out w^hilst the paper is damp, or dragged up with india-rubber, or the ink- erasing tablet. When it is desirable to remove colour from a space of moderate extent without washing, the part is wetted with a soft flat brush, and partly dried with ^ blotting-paper. Some stale bread is then crumbled on the paper, and rubbed to and fro with the palm of the hand, till enough colour has come away. To lighten a tint without wetting the paper, pumice is used, or, when a granulated surface is required, the finest glass-paper (that known as No. 0) , which should be first blunted by rub- bing it on a piece of drawing-paper. When lights or details are wiped or scraped out, or bread is used upon damped paper, it is essential that superficial moisture be first absorbed, otherwise more colour will come up than was intended, and smears or unmeaning forms be the only result. By the use of blotting-paper, delay is avoided, and the exact degree of dryness obtained. It must not be forgotten, when cor- rections are to be made, to adjust the drawing so that no discoloured water can run down it, or spread beyond the part under treatment. It too often happens that great dexterity of handling and mastery of technical artifices are cultivated to the c 2 36 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING comparative neglect of higher artistic qualities ; hence has resulted an undue depreciation of these attainments^ which J coupled with a sense of the facility with which Water-Colours lend themselves to the rapid expression of thought, sometimes leads to a quick, but slovenly, not to say reckless, way of working. By honest endeavour to do justice to the facts of nature, the learner should strive to acquire an expressive and therefore necessarily varied style of execution. Love of truth will be a safeguard against contented adoption of a monotonous mannerism, or over-fondness for display of the dexterous management of materials. IN WATER COLOURS. 87 CHAPTER III. THE USE OP CHINESE WHITE OR BODY-COLOUR. The perfecting of a permanent white pigment, possess- ing great body and working with facility, either thick or very diluted, has led to the creation of a new style of painting in Water-Colours, and some important modifi- cations of the earlier system. Chinese White itself is constantly termed Body-colour, though, strictly speaking, it is so only when combined with other pigments, white being a neutral or negation of colour. Body-colour, as formerly used, was what would now be more correctly termed Tempera or Distemper. The colours, generally in powder, were mixed with white to give them substance, and isinglass or other size was added to fix them on the paper or canvas. It was necessary to lay them on rapidly and with precision, as the lighter tints at least could not be re-touched or corrected. The general surface of the drawing, when dry, was dead, even and opaque; but gum, or some medium was often used to impart depth and richness to the darks. Distemper (painting) was suited rather to bold and suggestive, than to refined and complete work. It is now chiefly confined to decorations on a large scale, and to 38 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING theatrical scenery, but has of late re-appeared in a few cabinet pictures, by painters accustomed to oil-colours. The perfect flatness and uniformity of hue obtainable with Distemper-colour render it the best medium for the revived Art of Illuminating. By the method now in favour, and which affords very superior results, the Body- White is spread over the paper and forms a slightly absorbent and very luminous ground. When dry, colours, transparent or opaque, occasionally mixed with a little white, are touched over or blotted into it. Sometimes drawings that are finally loaded with Body- White, are begun with washes of transparent colour. This was Mr. W. Hunt's practice to the last, as the dissimilar surfaces of the paper, and the white pigment, enabled him to obtain the geatest possible variety of texture — an im- portant advantage to a painter of still-life. Sometimes^ diluted White is carried in a wash over the paper at starting, and more and more of the solid pigment added as the work progresses. Thick white, thus applied, takes but little hold on the paper, and a plan has been adopted, which, it is thought lessens the danger of its scaling off. The surface of the paper is rubbed down with fine glass-paper, so as to render it smooth, yet leave a slight clothiness, or, as artists say, a " tooth." The Body- White, evenly mixed, is spread thickly, and worked well in with the palette knife, or thumb. When dry, it is very delicately scraped to perfect evenness, with an eraser or round bladed knife. It must be admitted, that drawings executed on a ground IN WATER-COLOURS. 39 of Body- White are peculiarly liable to injury. Portions of the thick pigment, when quite dry, are very easily detached, and the colours, lying as a mere film on the soft ground, are affected at once by moisture, or by any accident, and much more seriously than when fixed by partial absorption to the paper itself. In favour of the method, it is justly urged that it permits the attainment of the greatest possible purity and subtlety of colouring together with a higher degree of luminousness than the natural surface of the paper can give. Many artists regard it as a serious drawback that the grain of paper casts a greyish shade ; which makes it necessary that the drawing should be viewed in such a position, that the light comes from behind the spectator, or at least in light identical in dii*ection with that under which it was painted. The finished surface which Body- White affords obviates this necessity, whilst paper of equal smoothness is in- eligible, being unfit for reception of thin colour. The process of glazing colours over, or blotting them into Body-colour, needs a light and practised hand. The White must not be disturbed in the slightest degree, or it will mix with, and spoil the tints that are passed over it. Corrections, how^ever, are easily made, as the pigment, when dry, can be lightly scraped away, and more touche'd on; but it must not be supposed on this account, that Body-colour is very manageable, and may be plastered on to remedy errors which w^orking at random has produced. Its especial value is for careful and refined w^ork, and to employ it effectively is so difficult, that students w^ill do 40 A CTIDB TO FIGUIIE PAINTWG well to restrict tliemselves at first, as much as possible to transparent colours. If their preference for Body-colour is strong, they will insensibly avail themselves of it more and more as they acquire knowledge and facility. The peculiar charms of a skilfully wrought drawing in Body- colour, are more readily felt than described. Clearness of outline without harshness, delightful intricacy of colour, solidity without coarseness, are among them. The author of The Elements of Drawing recom- mends to beginners. Distemper, i.e,^ colours mixed with white, as more tractable and giving more perfect results, especially in sketches, than transparent colours. It is not too much to assert, that the judgment of most artists would not support this advice. Colour thickened with White has been used with excellent effect on tinted paper by many, notably by the greatest of landscape painters — J. W. Turner ; but to a tyro, it is far more embarrassing than simple Water-Colours. Presumably the sketcher would use the ordinary moist colours, and the state to which the colour box would soon be brought may be imagined ; for the mixing must be done quickly, and so liberally, as to prevent the necessity of preparing a fresh tint, and match- ing it with that just used. Besides this, the White deprives the colours of all force and brightness, a consequence that is one of the great difficulties of oil painting. A quotation from Mr. Redgrave's pages supplies all that need be said on this point: — Water-Colour, depending for its lights on the purity and whiteness of its ground, and susceptible of the most infinitesimal gradations of tint and colour, by mere dilution of the pigments with water, has, so far, a m WATJIH-COLOUIIS. 41 wider range than oil is capable of ; wherein the tints, when painted solidly — as all the lights must almost of necessity be — are gradated by mixing the coloured pig- ments with White. This admits of far fewer gradations in scale, and has, moreover, the evil of altering somewhat the nature of the colours by such admixture, making the tint produced in a degree absorbent of light, and far less brilliant than in its transparent state by mere dilution." (Century of Painters^ Vol. II., pp. 109-10.) Space forbids a longer extract, but much follows of equal interest to those who wish to appreciate the relative value of the different methods of painting. In drawings of still life, without body-colour the highest degree of truth of imitation is unattainable ; and even in landscapes it has its value for defining forms in the foreground, giving texture, &c. It is better to wipe out the forms — especially of leafage — and touch a little Body-colour on where sharpness is required, than to paint them on thickly. Greater variety can be obtained in this way, sometimes laying the White pure, and glazing colour over it, sometimes mixing a little with the colours. Whilst some persons object altogether to the use of Body-White, others are opposed rather to its introduction in drawings executed principally in transparent colours. It is true, that the white pigment gives a surface differing from those parts of the work which show the true face of the paper. Still, it may be questioned whether it does not, when judiciously used, give effects quite as much in keeping as those obtained by scraping or wiping out. It may also be urged, in defence of this partial use, that it 42 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING enables the artist to work in a higher key than is other- wise possible. A touch of thick White appears, when dry, much whiter than the paper. If, therefore, it is painted over those points in a drawing which are to appear actually white, the plain paper will give the next degree of diminished brightness, a very faint tint the next, and so on, down the scale. It must sometimes happen that objects are to be represented, the surface of which is highly polished or glazed. If the bright points of lights upon these are left or wiped out, the paper must be toned down considerably to give the relatively dull appearance of merely white objects. Suppose, for instance, that a figure is to be painted clad in armour and wearing a white collar, like so many of Vandyke's portraits. If the paper is left for the high lights on the glistening steel, the collar must be made comparatively dark. But let the lights be carefully gradated, and, where brightest, put in with thick white ; then the paper, but slightly toned, will give, with suffi- cient accuracy, the relative Avhiteness of the linen. Often as a drawing advances, the paper proves to be of inferior quality, so that its surface yields at once when treated at all severely ; or, when the paper is good, parts are rendered, by frequent alterations, unfit for the recep- tion of thin colours, becoming, as artists say, rotten.''' In either case the defective spots may be covered with White in such a way that a little management will bring them into harmony with the rest of the work. It must be used rather thin, and will sink partly into the paper, yet, when dry, present a surface over which colours can IN WATER-COLOURS. 43 easily be worked. If applied too thickly it will show as a spot. From the strength and spring of the hairs, red sable brushes are well adapted for Body-colour painting, but, for some kinds of work (as dragging), soft hog hair brushes are preferable. Chinese White should be pro- cured in bottles, closed with the patent capsules, which are in every way better than corks or stoppers. After use, a drop or two of water should be added, to prevent the pigment from hardening. When the white has dried on the palette, it must be thoroughly mixed again with clean water, by the ivory palette knife. If it is attempted to work it up with the brush only, it will be pow^dery and want cohesion. Finally, to remove it from the paper, it should always, if thick, be lightly scraped up with a knife or eraser, and carefully brushed ofiF. If thin, it is easily taken up with a wet brush and blotting-paper. In conclusion, it maybe repeated, that Body-colour will always offend a critical eye unless introduced with refine- ment, as well as power. The very common prejudice against it has arisen, in great degree, from its having been so much employed to splash on tricky lights and conventional forms. 44 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING CHAPTER IV. FIGUEE PAINTING. " Talk not of Genius baffled, Genius is master of man, Genius does what it must, and Talent does what it can." Owen Mekedith. Figure painting is certainly the highest and most difficult branch of Pictorial Art, requiring in its extended practice, at least subordinate education, in all other branches, as well as a wide range of general knowledge. It cannot be supposed, therefore, that signal success is to be gained in this field even by those who are naturally gifted, except after such continued and arduous studies as none but professional students can be expected to go through. Some practice in painting figures, is, however, invalu- able to all who occupy themselves with Art-work of any kind, and many amateurs do, by making the most of opportunities, acquire a degree of skill that enables them to turn to good account, hours that might otherwise pass wearily. Besides those who aim at embodying their fancies in finished drawings, there is a large class of less ambitious workers. Some have a happy knack of hitting off a likeness ; others endeavour to perpetuate in sketches their impressions of the inhabitants of the places they visit. IN WATER-COLOURS, 45 Many who are unsuccessful in efforts to paint direct from nature are excellent copyists, and find pleasant and use- ful employment in reproducing pictures and drawings or making studies from such portions as are of chief interest. To all these, Water-Colours afford a cleanly, portable, and convenient medium, effective for the simplest tinted sketch or the most finished and forcible work. It is to amateurs that the present chapter is directly addressed. The course of those who follow Art as a profession shapes itself under different auspices, and needs such authoritative guidance as a Handbook of this class does not pretend to offer. To the Art of drawing the Figure, it is not intended to refer beyond mentioning that those who are quite begin- ners will do well to master the system recommended in the Handbook by Mr. G. Hicks, and illustrated in a new series of practical examples by the same artist, recently published by Messrs. Rowney. By careful copies from some of these, the fatal practice of measuring being reso- lutely shunned, the training of the eye will b^ well begun, and the learner will soon understand how to cultivate the habit of viewing natural forms as made up of masses enclosed by imaginary straight lines, to which curves and details, at first sight so perplexing, may be afterwards added. It will be found of the highest service to make a series of studies from plaster casts of hands and feet, which may be purchased at very low prices. They should be placed a little below the level of the eye and copied in all pos- sible positions. 46 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING If Sepia is used at times, instead of chalk or pencil, varieties of brushwork, hatching, stippling, &c., may be learned. Sepia is also very useful for occasional studies from the living model, as much experience is gained, whilst the work is divested of the difficulties incidental to the use of many colours. Gradations will be learnt best if white paper is used ; but the studies will look more effective if made on tinted paper ; so that the higher lights may be touched on with Body-White. Work of this kind is termed Monochrome. Few persons have sufficient patience and resolution to abstain long from recourse to colours. This is only natural, and, hoAvever important and difficult of attain- ment Drawing may be. Colour is at least equally so. Those who excel as colourists are rarely, if ever, scientific draughtsmen. They draw from feeling rather than knowledge, and understand form chiefly through the modifications it produces in the local colours. It is, however, advisable to carry on alternate practice, some- times making studies solely for the sake of the drawing, sometimes painting. Beginners need not trouble themselves with the ques- tion whether they have what is known as ^' a good eye for colours." Only time can decide the point ; for, however good the natural gift may be, it must be dili- gently cultivated, and, without command of the technical processes of the Art, the keenest appreciation of colour will be of little avail. The first works of Etty,* after- * Handbook for Young Painters, p. 200. IN WATEE-COLOUKS. 47 wards famous for his mastery of colour, were remarked by his contemporary, Leslie, as notably black and heavy," and the drawings of that brilliant colourist, the late Mr. W. Hunt, were for years very sober and low in tone. For many reasons, firsf practice in painting should be confined to heads only. On the importance of the head, pictorially, it is needless to dilate Whatever else is wrong in a picture the heads must be right. Great variety may be given to studies of the head, even if made only from one person, by changes in position, different arrangements of the hair, or varieties of head-dress, regard being always had to the character of the features. A head may be painted on a larger scale than is prac- ticable when the vfhole or much of the figure is to be represented. Thus scope is afibrded for free use of the brush, and errors in drawing or colours are more easily discovered and rectified. It should, however, be drawn either fully the natural size or decidedly smaller. If nearly life size, it conveys an impression of being a full size copy from an unnatu- rally small person. For indoor work, and especially for flesh-painting, the dry cake colours are the best. Every pigment has its own peculiar character and properties, but these are in a measure neutralized in the ''moist colours" from the nature of the medium with which they are combined. That the precise -value of each hue may be seen at once? some method should be observed in arranging the palette. Reds may stand first, ranging from dark to light, then 48 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING Yellows in the same order, and so on along the margin of the palette. The centre being reserved for mixing tints, &c. As it is important to keep in good condition the surface of the paper on which colour is to be used, a firmly outlined study should be prepared first ; from which a careful tracing can be transferred to the strained paper, with the ordinary red transfer paper. To prevent the tracing point from leaving too strong a mark, a sheet of thin paper may be placed between the transfer and tracing papers. If in the process of painting any part of the outline is lost, the sketch can be referred to, and the forms restored. The advantage of this plan will soon be felt, for the head of the sitter, can only remain for a short time exactly in one position ; but, the drawing once settled, the colouring may be carried on deliberately. Of course, when practice has given confidence, the head may be drawn, with brush or pencil, direct upon the paper on which it is to be completed in colour. If the outline is faint, or incomplete, it should be gone over with colour (Venetian Red). A soft brush, charged with clean water, must next be passed over the drawing. When it is almost dry, the chief shadows may be put in firmly, with Madder Brown, or Purple Lake and Burnt Sienna. When these are dry, a general tint is carried over the face, leaving the eyes and lips, and, if possible, the highest lights. Tor this wash, pale Venetian Red is ordinarily a good IN WATER-COLOURS. 49 colour, but for very delicate complexions, Madder Carmine, with a little Cadmium, is better. When the face is dark, or sallow, the first wash should be pale Yellow (Raw Sienna), and the next, Venetian or light Red. The lights, upon very dark complexions, should be carefully noticed, as they vary much in colour. The colour of the eyes and lips is next put in. It will be noticed that, as the iris is transparent, the strongest touch of colour will be opposite to the high light. The eyelashes should be marked in by a loose line of colour ; sometimes they catch the light, and are apparent chiefly by the shade they cast. The white portion of the eye must be toned down, to give value to the high light. This light, which gives vivacity to the eye, should not be put in with a hard touch of Body-White. According to the size of the drawing, it may be left or wiped out ; or scratched out with a sharp round pointed knife. Though the colour of the eye must be put in with small touches, the brush should be fully charged (see p. 31), otherwise a dry, unsuitable texture will result. The same loose touch of diluted colours should be used in painting the ear, mouth, and nostrils ; and, in portraits of old persons, the lines and wrinkles, which, if over elaborated, are apt to excite disgust rather than interest. For the lips. Madder Carmine is useful. If a more vivid colour is required, a minute touch or two of Scarlet Vermilion will suffice. The upper-lip receives less light^ and should be less strongly coloured than the lower. The ear being semi-transparent, all the markiug^ may 50 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING be put in with warm colour — Madder Brown or Purple Lake. The next step is to put in the local colour of the hair, but if the hair is very smooth and glossy a tint should be first carried over it, corresponding in colour to the lights. This having dried, the colour of the hair should be touched on with a full brush, leaving the broad lights sharply defined. If the hair is rough, the paper may be worked over with a wet hog hair brush till the surface has lost some of its firmness. The touches will then blend slightly, and give the required confused look. A little body colour can afterwards be dragged over points where the light shows brightly, and a few sharp touches will give such indications of form as are necessary. Rough hair of a strong beard may be imitated by coarse hatching and positive scratches from a sharp pointed blade, or by scratching the paper so as to roughen it, then applying local colour, and dragging on body-colour for the lights. At this stage the arrangement of the background must be decided on, and some colour washed in round the head. The simplest plan is to treat the background as a flat space of such colour as will give most effect to the flesh tint. Grey, or Greyish-Green, is well suited to set off" a delicate complexion, whilst a strongly coloured face will look better against a deep Olive, or Red Brown. It is generally best that the shaded side of heads painted in strong light should tell dark against the background. Many artists, however, prefer to treat heads of women and children as lit on the dark side by strong reflected IN WATER-COLOURS. 51 light, and keep the background dark so that the face tells wholly as a light against it. Dark points on the hair and about the features, in some degree, join the head to the background, and prevent its having a " cut out " appear- ance, giving, at the same time, solidity and relief. A reflector may be constructed out of white cardboard,^ or by straining calico on a deal frame about two feet square, and so adjusted as to slightly light the shaded side of the sitter's face. This expedient is of real service to those whose ten- dency is to exaggerate depth of shade, or who cannot render satisfactorily the colour of a strong shadow on flesh. The colouring of the face must be completed by touches of the primitive colours. As tints have always a tendency to become dirty, the brightest and purest colours should be used, as Cadium, Rose Madder, Scarlet Vermilion, and Cobalt. Cobalt and Raw Sienna must be hatched alternately into the shadows to cool them, and blend them by greenish- grey half shade with the half lights. The smaller and closer the hatching and stippling, the more difiicult it is to obtain good colour. Also, the more thoroughly one set of touches dries before the next is worked over and in it, the better the chance will be of preserving purity of tint. If hatching and stippling are used to flatten and give depth to the background, they must not attract the eye by the formal regularity of the touches. Close observation will show much variety of colour in difierent portions of the human face, but, for sketchy d2 52 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING likenesses, a general flesh tint may be washed on, and slight shading and modelling completed by hatching with a grey tint. Sometimes a front or full face view, sometimes a profile gives the most characteristic likeness ; but what is termed a three-quarter view is most picturesque. It has a greater variety in the forms and gives an oppor- tunity for introducing a greater breadth of light and shade, and also of showing the ear, which is often a beautiful feature."* For a miniature portrait, as it is very difficult to draw from nature with great accuracy on a minute scale, the easiest plan is to make a larger drawing and from it a reduced copy, to be corrected and coloured from nature. After some practice in painting heads, the next stage should be single figures, which will afibrd occasion for practice in all the elements of the Art. Whether one figure or several are to form the subject of a finished drawing, a slight sketch should be made first in which such points as relative position, attitude, arrangement of light and shade and colour, are approxi- mately determined. The living model must then be placed as nearly as possible in the desired attitude, and a careful drawing made. For preliminary outlines charcoal is generally used, it obeys the hand very readily, and gives suggestive lines, over which a firm outline may be marked with chalk or lead pencil. Bread, crumbled and lightly rubbed, will clear away the charcoal (loose parti- cles having been first dusted ofi*), without efiacing the pencil lines. * Burnet's Essays on Fine Arts, p. 52. IN WATER-COLOURS. 53 If the painting-room is small, the head of a standing figure will be too far above the level of the eye, whilst the feet are much below it, and present a discordant per- spective view. To obtain the result which greater distance would give, the simplest plan is to stand when working from the head and upper portion of the body, and sit near the ground, or raise the model, when studying the lower limbs. It is a good plan to make first studies from the model on paper not thicker than common note-paper. If the draw- ing becomes confused, a fresh piece of paper can be laid over it and, both being held firmly against a window pane in strong light, the leading lines of the spoilt sketch can be easily traced ofi* and the disheartening labour of commencing entirely de novo escaped. A study upon thin paper is easily transferred : it is only necessary to cover the back with red chalk or powder colour. The outline having been transferred to the strained paper and gone over with faint colour tp fix it, the paper should be cleaned up with bread and lightly washed as usual. Beginners will succeed better if they content them- selves for some time with small drawings only. Figures seven or eight inches high are quite large enough if they are to be worked into finished pictures. Mere studies, to be left without backgrounds, may be a little larger. They may also be advised not to, attempt figures in positions that the model cannot retaia steadily and unin- terruptedly for some time. 54 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAIKTING Artists, when depicting the human frame in vigorous action, rely chiefly on their knowledge of its structure and employ a model as assisting memory rather than as suggestive of position or movement. As some acquaintance with the anatomy of the external forms is indispensable, a work on the subject, by Mr. J. Marshall, is recommended. Those who find themselves unable to conquer the difiiculties which the drawing of the limbs in movement presents, may derive some comfort from this opinion of an eminent critic. ^'I doubt strongly whether the most satis- factory Art can deal with action at all ; — for the most fascinating pictures, — those before which we could willingly dwell and linger for ever, represent absolute repose. A picture of motion can only be true for one instant ; if looked at long, it becomes almost ridiculous."* The student's powers will be suflBciently taxed to impart to simple positions a look of natural ease and unstudied grace. In the treatment of female figures especially, aflfectation in expression or attitude must be carefully guarded against. It may be hard to define the point at which grace ends and aflectation begins, but evidence of self-consciousness in face or figure is very abhorrent to persons of true taste. The stiffness of pose and plain features, objected to in the early works of the Pre-Eaphaelites, were, when existent, but an exaggerated protest against the vapid prettiness and false graces formerly so popular in Art. * " Modern Etching in France," by P. G. HaK^erton. Fine Art Quar- terly, Jan., 1864. IN WATER-COLOURS. 55 To raise a drawing of a single figure from the rank of mere studies," it is necessary to invent some occupa- tion which, jointly with the attitude and expression, will suflSce to connect it with some easily imagined story. The position and action of the hands must, therefore, be well considered. The method of painting the head has been indicated, for the hands the same treatment and colours are employed. The constant changes that occur in the lines and folds of drapery, upon the slightest movement of the model, are a source of great perplexity to beginners. It is impossible to paint much of the drapery thoroughly at one time, but much more may be done with chalk or pencil than with colours. One plan, therefore, is to make a careful study, in black and white, of the dress upon the wearer, finishing one part at a time. The study can be copied into the picture, and either the costume or other piece of stufi* consulted only for colours. Slight changes and minor folds may be introduced, and expressive touches added till completeness is gained. The disposition of the drapery should indicate, though not obtrusively, the living form beneath. It is very difficult to arrange folds, and preserve to them an unstudied look. Often, when unsatisfactory, they will fall into better forms if the model moves freely about, and then resumes the previous position. Let this be done again and again if necessary, and with a little manage- ment much more agreeable and suggestive lines may be obtained thus than by attempts to force the material into coincidence with preconceived ideas. 56 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING Some artists mark in leading lines from the dress, whilst on the living model, then put it upon a lay-figure, and finish gradually. A lay figure is very useful, especially for long-flowing draperies, but requires much knowledge and judgment for its right employment. A practised eye will at once discover the want of vital form that betrays the artist who has been tempted by its immobility to over reliance on the lay-figure.* Some kinds of costume that fit rather closely, acquire certain folds which become permanent. These can be painted from the wearer, easily and without hurry, but, generally, the beginner working very slowly is quite baffled by the alterations that constantly take place. For out-door figure sketching rapidity is indispensable; it should therefore not be attempted until after some prac- tice in the studio. Difierent stuffs need not be too laboriously imitated, but should at least be so rendered, that each can be at once distinguished. The character of the folds will do much; but the brush work and executive processes must be varied. Crisp surfaces, silks, &c., are best painted with a full brush and blotty touch. Cloths and woollen stuff's, with loose cross hatching, or the paper may be slightly rough- ened ; but accurate observation will soon suggest appro- priate modes of treatment. A certain amount of picturesqueness is still occasion- * The wooden lay-figures are the cheapest, one of life size costing from 5 to 6 guineas. IN WATER-COLOURS. 57 ally to be found in the dress of rustics, and sea-faring persons and female dress generally is suited for pictorial purpose, if the ephemeral freaks of fashion are dis- regarded. The male costume of European upper and middle classes is almost unmanageable, except for those who can interest the spectator so much in the wearer, that what is worn passes unnoticed. It is to the past that artists turn most fondly, and indeed the dress of some periods was so beautiful, that it lends an interest to pictures of which the subject is quite trivial. As this work may come into the hands of some to whom information as to the chief authorities will be acceptable, a list of the best works on costume, &c., has been appended; all the works named are in the Art Library of the South Kensington Museum. For those who wish to paint figures in the dress of former times, two cautions may be useful. A look of newness should be avoided. We too often see characters in pictures attired as if they had just come from the tailor's hands. People were formerly more exposed to weather, and its effects on dress, than now, and also wore their clothes far longer, frequently bequeathing them by will with their other possessions. An over display of mere finery is also objectionable, always giving to costume a tawdry, theatrical look. Although in books on costume, we find many figures loaded with ornaments, a skilful artist' will know how to give an air of richness, and preserve characteristic peculiarities without recourse to heaps of gold-lace, feathers, and trinkets. 58 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING The selection of colours for drapery must depend on individual taste. " A painter," says Mr. Leslie, " should not encourage a dislike to any colour, for there is none that will not look beautiful in some combination with others." Very bright colours are apt to make the picture garish and vulgar. The most pleasing schemes are those in which such hues as Maroon, Olive, &c., predominate, relieved by well placed points of vivid colours. The shadows of dark stuffs that are cold in colour must be kept warm and rich, and should be painted boldly with such colours as Madder Brown, or Burnt Sienna and Purple Lake, (fee. Of w^arm coloured drapery the shadows must be comparatively grey and cool, that the lights may have full force and value. The colours of the dress should be focussed, so as to assist in fixing attention upon the head and hands, which should, of course, be the chief points of interest. White collars and cuifs are valuable aids to this object, and afford a delicate contrast, by which the purity of the flesh tints may be tested. Much will be learnt from studies made from any pieces of stuff, thrown at random round the lay figure or over the back of a chair. Every crease and fold should be copied with scrupulous exactness ; sometimes with colour, some- times with the lead pencil, or a pen and Indian ink. Figured stuffs, if the design is good and bold, afford excellent practice, as very accurate drawing is required to follow the pattern through its perspective changes. Before any finishing touches are introduced, some IN WATER-COLOURS. 59 colour must be washed in round the figure, the outline being carefully followed, so as to leave it sharply defined. When the background approaches completion, any edges that are too harsh can be softened down. The background must not display any strongly-marked lines that will lead the eye away out of the picture, and, as a rule, it is best to keep strongest points of colour and of light and dark about the centre of the drawing, and the marginal portions comparatively uniform in tone. If the background is to be very dark, the paper must be washed till much of the size has worked out of it, coming away in frothy scum ; otherwise the colours will become opaque and smeary. A single figure should not occupy the exact middle of the composition. Ordinarily there should be a greater space above than below it, and on that side toward which it is turned (when a side or three-quarter view is given), than behind it. The colours of accessories, such as chairs, tables, curtains &c., may be used either to heighten by contrast or modify by similarity the general colouring of the figure. For example : if the dress is red, it will appear redder if a green curtain is near it, less red if the curtain be crimson or orange. The effect that colours have upon each other when in juxtaposition is best learnt by repeated experiments ; but a little work by Mr. Bacon, entitled The Theory of Colour^ and published by Messrs. Rowney, may be mentioned as inexpensive and as comprising in its few pages almost all the information on the subject that is of real importance to students. 60 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING The extremes of light and dark observed in Nature are so far beyond the reach of art that a compromise of some sort is unavoidable. Either the shadows must be intensified at a sacrifice of colour to ensure strong relief and brilliancy in the lights, or the efiect of re- flected light upon parts in shade may be allowed for, and their colour indicated, in which case the high lights must in some degree suffer depreciation. This last course, necessitating great refinement in the grada- tion of the colours, seems best adapted to water-colour painting. Intense darks are difficult to obtain with water-colours, and in drawings we look rather for pre- valence of light and colour than marked contrasts and great extent of shade. When much force is sought there is always a temptation to employ gum or other " medium," but their use is open to many objections. Not only do they render the drawing peculiarly sus- ceptible of injury from a too dry or too moist atmos- phere — the first covering the surface with cracks, and the last, with a sort of mildew — but also they endanger the general harmony of the colouring. Those parts of the work over which gum has been passed have a dis- agreeable shining look, and are so deep in tone as to contrast too violently with the rest. It is one chief advantage of hatching and stippling that, if steadily repeated, they bring out in its best form the utmost strength of colour which each pigment affords. This extreme pitch is seldom reached, but ought to supersede the necessity for any artificial intensity. IN WATER-COLOURS. 61 The characteristic excellences of water colour are never more favourably seen than in drawings which display figures under open-air effects, and relieved against com- paratively light landscape back-grounds. There are two ways of treating landscape in combination with figures. The various features of the scene may be generalized so as to concentrate interest chiefly on the figures, or both may be rendered with equal completeness and fidelity so that each shall lend attractions to the other. In any case, the representation of natural scenery, however much generalized, should be such an abstract of truth as will call the imaginative faculty into play, and assist the sentiment of the picture. The question, how close an imitation of the exact components of any scene is advisable, opens a wide field for discussion, but much depends upon the degree of importance which is intended to be given to the human element. " To follow Nature, unquestionably opens its own chap- ter of dangers. The picture may aim at too simply reproducing its original, it may imitate so closely that human thought and feeling, which separate fine art from the lifeless perfection of the photograph . . . shall hold almost no place in the work." It is in the quality of Thought that what makes Art, emphatically Art, lies. The photograph gives us an imitation; Nature gives us herself, — a beauty which nothing can reproduce, — but if it were reproducible, we should still desire something difierent from either ; something which shall repeat Reality for us, coloured ^by the soul of 62 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING another human creature." — F. T. Palgrave. Handhooh to Fine Art Galleries^ Uxhibition^ 1862 ; pp. 45, 4. The value for pictorial purposes of the seeming sym- pathy between inanimate Nature and Humanity is too obvious to need comment. Some artists paint the landscape portions of their figure-pictures direct from Nature, though some changes are generally unavoidable in order to adapt the transcript to their requirements. More usually, however, the com- position is made up from sketches prepared expressly with a view to their being reproduced in combination with figures. This is certainly the easiest plan, but all such sketches, or rather studies, must be very faithful and tolerably minute, otherwise they will be found of little service. Those who propose to make figures their chief study, will best employ such time as they can devote to landscape painting, if they accustom themselves to think before sketching any scene whether it will form a good "setting," so to speak, for figures. As a rule, bits, such as picturesque doorways, windows, old staircases, ivy or vine- clad walls, are more likely to be turned to account after- wards, than extensive views. With varying occasions, memoranda of any and every kind may be in demand, but experience will soon teach the sketcher what objects to select for study, with reference to immediate or probable wants. It should be noticed 4:hat the words " sketch " and " study " are often used indiscriminately. A sketch from Nature properly means a suggestive, but intentionally incomplete transcript ; by a study is meant something done for the acquisition of as much knowledge IN WATER-COLOURS. 63 as possible ; and Nature is therefore followed closely, and unpleasing as well as pleasing features recorded. A sketch for a picture is the first rough embodiment of the artist's idea ; carried further, it becomes a " design." A study is more elaborate, being an experimental arrangement corresponding to an inventor's model. When accessories, such as furniture, implements, &c., are introduced in a drawing, it is of course impossible always to have before one the actual object which is to be represented. Sketches and studies, when available, seldom give the exact position, colour, &c., that are required, and reference to Nature is so essential that some object, resem- bling as nearly as may be that which is to be depicted, should always be looked at. The hints it affords will greatly assist the imagination, and ensure a look of truth that is otherwise unattainable. A little ingenuity will generally provide a tolerable substitute, and relieve the artist from the necessity for "evolving out of his. inner consciousness " anything but minor details. When a drawing is so far advanced that all parts have received at least their first tones of colour, it may be thought that the substitution of another colour, or the introduction of very strong colour at a certain point, will give improved effect. The experiment can be easily made with soft coloured crayons, which will do no injury to the drawing, and can be removed readily with a little crumbled bread. With regard to ^' finish," the distance at which the drawing is to be seen must be considered. Touches that seem coarse and wrong, when looked at close, may be quite 64 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING right if viewed a little farther off. As a rule, the distance at which a well-ordered picture can be fairly seen will be little more (never less) than its greatest length, measured diagonally. Removed so far from the spectator's eye, all perspective lines, if correctly drawn, will look right, and details have their proper value, without detracting from the effect of the general disposition of colour and light and dark. True finish does not consist in imperceptible touches, or minutely made out details, but in the complete fulfil- ment of the artist's intention. As long as the painter hnows that a touch might be added that would improve the work, so long it is unfinished. Hardness and evidence of too much labour are better faults in the drawings of beginners than slovenliness or attempted boldness. Right finish is only possible to the experienced, for none but they who know precisely what was to be done ca,n perceive the exact point at which they should desist. Learners must try to determine what facts about the object they are depicting are most worthy of record, and work on till they have succeeded in some degree to their satisfaction. Better advice on this matter than Mr. Ruskin's cannot be given: — ''Young students will find it, on the whole, the best thing they can do, to strive to be clear, not affectedly clear, but manfully and firmly. Mean something and say something whenever you touch canvass ; yield neither to the affectation of precision, nor of speed ; and trust to time, and your own honest labour to invest your work generally, and in such measure as your genius can reach, i:n vtater-colours. 65 with the tenderness that comes of love, and the mystery that comes of power." Those who bend closely over their work should rise now and then, and view it from a little distance, otherwise the due relation of various parts is likely to be neglected, and too much labour bestowed on favourite bits. A mirror will be found of service, as it shows the drawing reversed, and intensifies the effect, so as often to reveal inaccuracies and deficiencies previously unnoticed. No one part of a drawing should engage the worker's attention too long uninterruptedly ; and if red, or other strong colour, is in use, it is imperative that the eye be frequently refreshed, for it soon becomes fatigued, and loses its powers of dis- crimination. As a consequence, parts that after much painstaking, seem right when left, are found very unsatis- factory when returned to after an interval. If anything goes wrong, no good will result from violent and hasty efforts at correction. The cause of failure and the best mode of alteration should be thought over, and a little time allowed to elapse before repairs are attempted. A spoilt drawing should not be thrown away, but put out of sight for a while, and looked at again when another is in progress. Such records of failure are very instructive, and often contain good parts, examination of which will give encouragement, and conduce to the better success of subsequent attempts. Great differences of opinion exist as to the practical value of those treatises in which colouring, light and shade, and composition, are reduced to principles, and E 66 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING systematized. On one side it is alleged that " Rules are fetters only to men of no genius on the other that they who have genius do not require rules, which only help men of inferior ability to produce common-place and conventional art. Such works have, however, at least this use: they teach the learner to look for the " why and wherefore " in those works of art which excite admiration, and to bear in mind that a direct and discoverable intention pervades each, though in accordance with the old maxim: " Ars est celare artem^^ — the greater the artist, the less obviously displayed this intention will be. Originality cannot be too highly prized, but mere eccentricity or affectation must not be mistaken for a sign of genius — a much rarer gift than is generally im- agined. Copies from natural forms, set without method upon paper or canvas, will no more make a picture than the sounds obtained by striking at random the keys of an instrument will constitute music. It will seldom happen that amateurs have the time or heart for the experiments and investigations by which the professional artist advances to the formation of his own style. They may therefore be advised to familiar- ize themselves with those laws, conformity with which will secure to their drawings a completeness of effect that never fails to please. Of the " Theory of Art," the late John Burnet and J. D. Harding were admirable exponents, and those who have the opportunity of acquainting themselves with their writings will find them worthy of attentive study. IN WATER-COLOURS. 67 The judicious remarks of the author of The Theory of Colour^ already noticed, have anticipated much that might have been said here on the critical study of pictures. Figure Painting in Water Colours has been pursued with success by comparatively few, and their works are not often available for study. Even at South Kensington no permission is given to copy the specimens of water-colour art, which form the Ellison gift, and the owners of valuable drawings are generally deterred, by various considerations, from lending them with a view to their being copied. " Under these circumstances, the young painter in water-colours is compelled to seek instruction from the works of oil painters, and may ^safely do so, bearing in mind that the relations, but not the character (or quality) of colour seen in oil pictures, should be imi- tated. Drawing, composition, management of draperies, treatment of backgrounds and accessories, — these are points on which invaluable teaching may be drawn from the pictures of the great masters of figure painting. That a different, or rather modified, treatment of light and shade is preferable in water-colour drawings has already been explained (page 60). A faithful copy of any picture, even on a reduced scale, requires for its execution much time, that might in most cases be better bestowed. It is well at times to reproduce as accu- rately as possible selected parts, such as a beautiful or expressive head, a figure remarkable for diflBculties overcome in drawing and pose, or any very choice pas- sage of colours. Those, however, who intend to give E 2 68 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING form to their own ideas will find it more advantageous to analyze pictures, and note in small studies the prin- ciples by which they are dominated. If, for example, the colouring is striking and agreeable, let the arrangement and proportions of the colour-masses be recorded with little attention to the forms. If the scheme of light and dark is the most noteworthy feature, let it be re- peated in black and white only, and separated from detail, preserving the relative quantities of full light and half light, full shade and half shade, &c. After a little practice, memoranda of this sort will present no difficulty, and will afford employment for time that may be snatched from other occupations, for brief visits to any picture gallery within reach. It is not supposed that amateur artists will always look at works of art with a purpose of obtaining know- ledge that may assist them in their own practice, but progress in figure painting demands much devotion, and many who have seldom time to spare are anxious, in- deed obliged, to utilize all their opportunities. To ensure great exactness in a copy, especially if it is to be smaller than the original, this device is fre- quently resorted to. The picture is surrounded by a light frame, across which each way are stretched threads, at equal distances, so as to form a series of squares. The size of the intended copy having been marked out on the paper, it is divided by ruled lines into the same number of squares. The task of copying the part enclosed within each square of threads into the corre- sponding square on the paper thus becomes almost IN WATER-COLOURS. 69 mechanical, and at any complicated part of the design the squares may be made smaller. Space remains only for a few words on the treat- ment of a drawing as it approaches completion. It is generally advisable before the last stage is reached, to cut the drawing off the board, and "lay it down" or " back it," fix it upon another sheet of paper. This may be done as follows: — strain a piece of stout cartridge paper (see p. 11) ; being very absorbent it will require little sponging ; when it is dry, draw pencil lines round the drawing (leaving a margin, if there is a possibility, that its limits may finally have to be extended a little) ; cut it out neatly and lay it face downwards on a sheet of glossy paper; damp the back slightly, and spread over it a thin coat of rather stiff paste, taking care that the edges are completely covered and that no lumps are left ; turn it over on the strained paper, cover it with a sheet of smooth paper, and press it down directing the pressure from the centre towards the edges, and wiping away any paste that works out. When adhesion is complete, set it aside to dry gradually. It should be protected from dust, and must not touch anything, as the moisture will affect the coloured surface for some hours. When it is thoroughly dry, the process may be repeated till several sheets are united, but if the drawing is to be framed, a better plan is to strain the cartridge paper on a thin deal panel, fix the drawing upon it, and let it so remain. Before the last touches are added, decision must be made as to the kind of frame or mount that is to sur- 70 A GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING round the drawing. It is always worth while to give to tolerably successful work the advantage of a good white mount, which will greatly enhance its appearance. The ^'French," or cut-out mounts are the best, enclosing the drawing effectively, and protecting its surface. At the present day, water-colours are generally framed ''close," i,e.^ with a narrow gilt, instead of a broad white, margin or flat. If this method is preferred, the drawing should be seen in the frame before it is com- pleted, as the immediate juxtaposition of the gold has often very considerable effect upon the colouring. The successive steps in the development of a drawing have now been traced, somewhat indirectly, yet, it is hoped, without any material omission. In conclusion, it must be impressed upon beginners that they must not suffer them- selves to be daunted by ill success at first. Like Antaeus, who, wrestling with Hercules, rose with renewed vigour after every overthrow, they should gather fresh strength and resolution from their failures. Persistent efforts will bring, not only improvement in their own work, but also the enviable power of justly estimating those excellences in the works of great artists, which are hidden from the untrained observer. With this, moreover, will come tenfold increased faculties for discernment and enjoyment of the endless beauties of Nature. In the stately words of Sir Joshua Reynolds, A perception of the beautiful and the grand in art is equivalent to the possession of another sense, for it supplies a new power of reading and appre- ciating the beauties and sublimities of the natural world." The student sighs for the day when he shall call himself ' IN WATER-COLOURS. 71 an artist, but it is the happiness of the artist that, through life, though not in name, yet in fact, he is always a student. " Things won are done, joy's soul lies in the doing." Those who are disposed to take an unreasonably des- pondent view of their progress and attainments may be reminded that, however relatively successful, earnest workers, in whatever field, can never be fully satisfied with the result of their endeavours. If their aim is high, a sense of disappointment must inevitably follow them through their whole career. Beginners who have a true feeling for art must be prepared to find their appreciation of excellence for a long time in advance of their powers of performance. The feelings of an artist in relation to his own work are generally in strict accordance with the beautiful poem by Miss Proctor, " Unexpressed," some verses from which are here borrowed as appropriate " last words." *♦ Dwells within the soul of every artist More than all his efforts can express ; And he knows the best remains unuttered ; Sighing at what we call his success. " Vainly he may strive ; he may not tell us All the sacred mystery of the skies, Vainly he may strive ; the deepest beauty Cannot be unveiled to mortal eyes. *' And the more devoutly that he listens, And the holier message that is sent, Still the more his soul must struggle vainly. Bowed beneath a noble discontent I " APPENDIX. LIST OF WORKS ON COSTUME, &c. Italian. Bonnard. Costumes des 13^-15^ Si^cles. 6 Vols. French. Lacroix & Sere. Le Moyen Age." 5 Vols. Herb6. Costumes, Furniture, Weapons, &c. German. German Costumes, 15th and 16th centuries. Joliemont and Gagniet. Recueil d'Objets d^Art." Hefner. " Costume du Moyen Age." 3 Vols. Classic. Hope's Costume of the Ancients." Various. Historical Costumes. Pauquet Freres. 1 Vol. English. Civil Costume of England. By C. and L. Martin. 1 Vol. Strutt. Dress and Habits of the People of England. Smith. Selection of Ancient Costumes. Fairholt. Costume in England. 1 Vol. Armour, &c. Ancient Arms and Armour in Europe. 3 Vols. Meyrick, Sir S. Armour. 2 Vols. Vieil Castel. Arms, Costumes, &c. 4 Vols. "PRIZE MEDALS AWARDED/ Exhibition of all Nations, 1851, Prize Medal. Paris Universal Exhibition, 1855, Two Prize Medals. International Exhibition, 1862, Two Prize jMedals. Dublin International Exhibition, 1865, Prize Medal. Paris Universal Exhibition, 1867, Two Silver Medals. Lyons Universal Exhibition, 1872, Silver Medal. Philadelphia International Exhibition, 1876, Prize Medal. Paris Universal Exhibition, 1878, Prize Medal. MESSRS. GEORGE ROWNEY & CO. IIAVK THK pleasure TO ANNOUNCE THAT BV THEIR SYSTEM OF GRINDINCx COLOURS BY MACHINERY, They are enabled to supply Artists' colours in oil, water, or powder, perfectly fine, at the same prices as hitherto charged for colours less finely ground. .Messrs. G. R. & Co. feel assured the OIL COLOURS ground by their improved process will be found to be finer ^ brighter^ lezs o'lly^ and to dry quicker than any others at present manufactured j and that their WATER COLOURS prepared by the same process, will prove to be finer^ brighter^ and to fioat more enjcnly iv'ithout granulation than any other colours hitherto produced. They therefore solicit a trial in full confidence of giving satisfaction. RETAIL DEPARTMENTS: 52, RATHBONE PLACE, and 29, OXFORD STREET, W. GEORGE ROWNEY & CO.'S WATER COLOURS, GROUND BY MACHINERY. LIST OF WATER COLOURS. Ultramarine Deep Rose Extract Madder Car- mine Aureolin Burnt Carmine Carmine Cadmium, Pale Cadmium, Yellow Cadmium, Orange Cadmium, Orange J)eep Dahlia Carmine Gallstone Azure Blue Cobalt French Ultramarine Black Lead Brown Madder Chinese Orange Coeruleum Crimson I,ake Indian Lake Iniiian Yellow Italian Ultra Magenta Antwerp Blue Bistre Blue Black Blue Verditer Brown Ochre Brown Pink Burnt Sienna Burnt Umber Chinese White Chrome i. Lemon Chrome 2, Middle Chrome 3, Orange Chrome 4, Deep Cologne Earth Dragon's Blood Emerald Green Flake White Gamboge Hooker's Green, i Hooker's Green, 2 Indian Red Indigo Italian Ochre Italian Pink Ivory Black Purple Madder Smalt Ultra Ash Green Oxide of Chromium Intense Blue Madder Lake Mars Orange Pink Madder Pure Scarlet Rose Madder Lemon Yellow Veronese Green Violet Carmine Mauve Mars Yellow Orange Vermilion Purple Lake Scarlet Vermilion Scarlet Lake Sepia Roman Sepia Warm Sepia King's Yellow Lamp Black Light Red Naples Yellow Neutral Tint Olive Green Orange Orpiment Payne's Grey Permanent Blue Permanent White Prussian Blue Prussian Green Purple Raw Sienna Raw Umber Red Lead Roman Ochre Sap Green Terra Vert Vandyke Brown Venetian Red Verdigris Vermilion Yellow Lake Yellow Ochre Whole Cakes, Moist Pans, or Tubes. Each s. d. Half Cakes or Half Pans. Each s. d. 10 6 GEO. ROWNEY & CO.'S JAPANNED TIN SKETCHING BOXES, FILLED WITH MOIST COLOURS. £ S. d. 1- Cake Box 048 Sepia. 2- Cake Box 058 Sepia and Chinese White. 3- Cake Box 070 Raw Sienna, Indigo, and Sepia. 4- Cake Box .083 Raw Sienna, Sepia, Indigo, and Chinese White. LANDSCAPE, 6-Cake Box .. .. .. o 10 9 Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Light Red, Crimson Lake, Van- dyke Brown, and Prussian Blue. LANDSCAPE. lo-Cake Box o 19 o Gamboge, Roman Ochre, {{) Lemon Yellow, [\) Chinese Orange, [\) Indian Red, (i;) Vermilion, Brown Pink, Sepia, Cceruleum, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue, and Veronese Green. LANDSCAPE. I2-Cake Box I 4 O Gamboge, Raw Sienna, {{) Lemon Yellow, (i) Pale Cad- mium, (i) Orange Cadmium, {{) Mars Orange, [\) Indian Red, [{) Vermilion, Crimson Lake, Madder Brown, Sepia, Lamp Black, Cobalt, Prussian Blue, and Olive Green. 4 LANDSCAPE AND FIGURE. £ s. d. I2-Cake Box I 5 6 Yellow Ochre, {\) Lemon Yellow, (i) Orange Cadmium, Mars Yellow, Light Red, (|) Scarlet Vermilion, (i) Rose Madder, {\) Carmine, [\) Purple Lake, Vandyke Brown, Madder Brown, Cceruleum, French Ultramarine, (|) Indigo, [\) Emerald Green, and Veronese Green. LANDSCAPE AND FIGURE. i6-Cake Box I 15 o Raw Sienna, Indian Yellow, (|) Lemon Yellow, [-) Italian Pink, (I) Cadmium Yellow, (|) Orange Cadmium, Brown Ochre, Burnt Sienna, Scarlet Vermilion, Madder Lake, Indian Lake, Raw Umber, Vandyke Brown, Cobalt, French Ultra- marine, Indigo, {\) Ultramarine Ash, [\) Emerald Green, and Green Oxide of Chromium. LANDSCAPE AND FIGURE. 18-Cake Box I 15 o Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Roman Ochre, [\) Aureolin, (i) Italian Pink, Indian Yellow, (i) Cadmium Yellow, [\) Orange Cadmium, Brown Ochre, Light Red, (|) Indian Red, (^) Scarlet Vermilion, Rose Madder, (|) Indian Lake, [\) Lamp Black, Raw Umber, Sepia, Cobalt, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue, {\) Emerald Green, [\) Olive Green, and Vero- nese Green. LANDSCAPE, FIGURE, &c. 20-Cake Box .. .. .. .. .. .. .. ..216 Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Roman Ochre, (i) Lemon Yellow, Aureolin, Indian Yellow, [\) Cadmium Yellow, [\) Orange Cadmium, Light Red, [\) Indian Red, (~) Vermilion, (I) Scarlet Vermilion, {\) Carmine, Rose Madder, Madder Brown, Brown Ochre, Vandyke Brown, Sepia, Cobalt, French Ultramarine, Indigo, [\) Emerald Green, (|) Olive Green, [\) Coeruleum, (i) Ultramarine Ash, and Veronese Green. LANDSCAPE, FIGURE. &c. 22-Cake Box 279 Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Raw Sienna, (|) Lemon Yellow, (i) Aureolin, Indian Yellow, [\) Cadmium Yellow, {\) Orange Cadmium, Light Red, {\) Indian Red, {\) Vermilion, {\) Orange Vermilion, (^) Carmine, Rose Madder, Madder Brown, Brown Ochre, Burnt Umber, Sepia, Cobalt, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue, [\) Emerald Green, [\) Lamp Black, {\) Coeruleum, [\) Ultramarine Ash, {\) Smalt, (|) Purple Madder, Olive Green, and Veronese Green. E. DUNCAN'S ARRANGEMENT (Sea and Landscape). WHOLE PANS. Gamboge, Indian Yellow, Yellow Ochre, Roman Ochre, Raw Sienna, Burnt Sienna, Venetian Red, Chinese Orange, Madder Brown, Vandyke Brown, Cceruleam, Cobalt, Prussian Blue, Indigo, Lamp Black, and Sepia. HALF PANS. Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Orange, Scarlet Vermilion, Carmine, Rose Madder, Purple Lake, Extract of Madder Carmine, Violet Carmine, Ultramarine Ash, and Veronese Green. Price per box, ^2 5s. 6d. F. TAYLOR'S ARRANGEMENT (Figure, Animal, & Landscape). WHOLE PANS. Gamboge, Lemon Yellow, Indian Yellow, Raw Sienna, Brown Pink, Veronese Green, Indigo, French Ultramarine, Cobalt, Cceruleum, Chinese Orange, Burnt Sienna, Indian Red, Scarlet Vermilion, Madder Brown, and Sepia. HALF PANS. Cadmium Yellow, Orange Cadmium, Yellow Ochre, Olive Green, Vandyke Brown, Purple Madder, Purple Lake, Rose Madder, and Ultramarine Ash. Price per box, £2 6s. 6d, 6 JAPANNED TIN SKETCH BOXES, FILLED WITH HALF-PANS OF MOIST COLOURS. £ 5. d. 3-Half-Cake Box 05^ Gamboge, Light Red, and Cobalt. 8-Half-Cake Box 010 3 Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Light Red, Rose Madder, Van- dyke Brown, Cobalt, Prussian Blue, and Veronese Green. I2-Half-Cake Box 013 9 Gamboge, Roman Ochre, Lemon Yellow, Chinese Orange, Indian Red, Vermilion, Brown Pink, Sepia, Cceruleum, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue, and Veronese Green. 14-Half-Cake Box o 16 9 Gamboge, Raw Sienna, Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Yellow, Mars Orange, Indian Red, Vermilion, Crimson Lake, Madder Brown, Sepia, Lamp Black, Cobalt, Indigo, and Olive Green. i6-Half-Cake Box 103 Yellow Ochre, Lemon Yellow, Orange Cadmium, Mars Yellow, Light Red, Scarlet Vermilion, Rose Madder, Carmine, Purple Lake, Vandyke Brown, Madder Brown, Cceruleum, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue, Emerald Green, and Veronese Green. 18-Half-Cake Box I I o Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Pale, Orange Cadmium, Chinese Orange, Light Red, Vermilion, Orange Vermilion, Crimson Lake, Rose Madder, Sepia, Brown Pink, Cobalt, Indigo, Cceruleum, Payne's Grey, and Terra Vert. 20-Half-Cake Box I 4. o Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Aureolin, Cadmium Pale, Orange Cadmium, Chinese Orange, Light Red, Vermilion, Orange Vermilion, Crimson Lake, Rose Madder, Violet Carmine, Sepia, Brown Pink, Payne's Grey, Cobalt, Prussian Blue, Cceruleum, Emerald Green, and Veronese Green. JAPANNED TIN BOXES OF MOIST WATER COLOURS, IN COMPRESSIBLE TUBES WITH FOLDING PALETTE. £ s. d. i2-Moist Tube Box ^ 5 ^ Gamboge, Roman Ochre, Lemon Yellow, Chinese White, Indian Red, Vermilion, Brown Pink, Sepia, Coeruleum, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue, and Veronese Green. 15-Moist Tube Box I 14 3 Gamboge, Raw Sienna, Aureolin, Cadmium Yellow, Mars Orange, Indian Red, Vermilion, Crimson Lake, Madder Brown, Sepia, Lamp Black, Cobalt, Prussian Blue, Olive Green, and Chinese White. 20-Moist Tube Box ^53 Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Aureolin, Cadmium Pale, Orange Cadmium, Chinese Orange, Chinese White, Light Red, Vermilion, Orange Vermilion, Crimson Lake, Rose Madder, Violet Carmine, Sepia, Brown Pink, Cobalt, Prussian Blue, Cceruleum, Emerald Green, and Veronese Green. 24-Moist Tube Box 2 lo 6 Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Roman Ochre, Aureolin, Indian Yellow, Orange Cadmium, Light Red, Indian Red, Vermilion, Scarlet Vermilion, Carmine, Rose Madder, Madder Brown, Brown Ochre, Vandyke Brown, Sepia, Cobalt, French Ultram.arine, Prussian Blue, Emerald Green, Olive Green, Cceruleum, Veronese Green, and Chinese White. 30-Moist Tube Box 37^ Gamboge, Yellow Ochre, Naples Yellow, Roman Ochre, Lemon Yellow, Indian Yellow, Orange Cadmium, Aureolin, Light Red, Indian Red, Vermilion, Scarlet Vermilion, Carmine, Rose Madder, Madder Brown, Brown Ochre, Vandyke Brown, Warm Sepia, Brown Pink, Cobalt, French Ultramarine, Prussian Blue,Neutral Tint, Ivory Black, Emerald Green, Veronese Green, Olive Green, Chinese White, Cceruleum, and Ultramarine Ash. 8 MINIATURE SIZE JAPANNED SKETCH BOXES, FILLED WITH QUARTER-CAKE QUANTITIES OF MOIST COLOURS. This Illustration shetvs the Box, with Twelve Colours, t7vo-thirds its size. s. d. 4-Quarter-Cake Box .. .. .. .. .. .. 4 o Raw Sienna, Light Red, Sepia, and Cobalt. 8-Quarter-Cake Box 60 Raw Sienna, Yellow Ochre, Light Red, Rose Madder, Vandyke Brown, Cobalt, Prussian Blue, and Veronese Green. i2-Quarter-Cake Box ^3 Gamboge, Roman Ochre, Lemon Yellow, Chinese Orange, Indian Red, Vermilion, Brown Pink, Sepia, Coeruleum, French Ultramarine, Indigo, and Veronese Green. i6-Quarter-Cake Box 12 o Yellov/ Ochre, Aureolin, Orange Cadmium, Mars Yellow, Light Red, Scarlet Vermilion, Rose Madder, Carmine, Purple Lake, Vandyke Brown, Madder Brown, Coeruleum, French Ultra- marine, Prussian Blue, Emerald Green, and Veronese Green. PALETTE BOXES. For holding a small supply of Colours for a few days' use ; the wells to be filled from the tubes . . . . . . . . ..59 Ditto, ditto, with double row of wells .. .. .. ..8 6 9 SOLID SKETCH BLOCKS & TABLETS. The Blocks consist of a number of sheets of paper, compressed so as to form a solid mass, each sheet of which is to be separated by inserting a knife underneath the uppermost one, and passing it round the edge. The Tablet is a block fixed in a case, with a pocket for carrying the sketches and place for pencil. MADE OF WHATMAN'S OR HODGKINSON'S THICK PAPERS. 32 SURFACES. SOLID BLOCKS. SOLID TABLETS. Imperial 32mo 5 inches by 3|- S. Each I d. 3 ■ s. Each 2 d. 6 Royal i6mo - - 5i I 9 3 Imperial i6mo 7 5 2 6 3 9 Royal 8vo 9 r- I 3 "2 3 4 3 Imperial 8vo - lO 5? 7 3 9 5 6 Imperial 6 mo - H 4 9 7 6 Royal 4to - 9 4 9 7 6 Imperial 4to - 14 ,, 10 7 6 10 6 Imperial 3mo 20 „ 9\ 9 9 15 3 Half Royal 18 „ Hi 10 3 16 3 Half Imperial 20 14 14 3 20 3 lO SOLID SKETCH BLOCKS AND TABLETS. MADE OF WHATMAN'S OR HODGKINSON'S EXTRA THICK PAPERS. 32 SURFACES. Imperial i6mo Double Elephant i6mo Imperial 8vo Imperial 6mo Double Elephant 8vo Imperial 4to Imperial 3mo Double Elephant 4to Half Imperial 7 inches by 5 Each 9 lo' 14 12 14 20 18 20 6 7 7 9 10 9\ 12 14 SOLID BLOCKS. d. 13 16 19 Each SOLtD TABLETS. S. d. 4 3 6 o 6 9 9 9 II 3 13 o 18 9 22 o 25 9 SOLID SKETCH BLOCKS AND TABLETS. MADE OF THICK MACHINE MADE TINTED CRAYON PAPERS. 32 SURFACES. Imperial 3 2 mo Royal i6mo Imperial i6mo Royal 8vo Imperial 8vo Imperial 6mo Royal 4to Irhperial 4to Imperial 3mo Half Royal Half Imperial SOLID BLOCKS. S. d. SOLID TABLETS. S. d. 5 inches by 3^ Each i o Each 2 7 9 10 14 14 20 18 20 4t 5 Si 7 7 9 10 9\ 14 2 2 3 4 6 6 7 12 13 15 SKETCHING PORTFOLIOS, WITH JAPANNED TIN FRAME FOR SECURING THE PAPER IN USE, AND WITH POCKET TO CONTAIN THE SKETCHES & A SUPPLY OF PAPER. SIZE. s. d. Imperial 8vo - - - - 11 inches by 7 - Each 5 3 Royal 4to - - - 12,, 9 - 60 Imperial 4to - - - - 15 11 - 7 ^ Half Royal - - - - 19 12 - n 3 Double Elephant 4to ^ - 18 12\ - 120 Half Imperial - - - - 22 ,,15 - SKETCH BOOKS. MADE OF Whatman's hand-made drawing papers. Half-bound, Cloth Sides, Roan Backs, Gilt. Forty Leaves. TO FASTEN WITH ELASTIC BAND. IIZE. s. d. Imperial 32010 - - 5 inches by 3i Each I 6 Imperial i6mo 7 5 2 3 Demy 8vo _ _ _ 7 >5 4| I 9 Medium 8vo - 8 59 5 2 3 Royal 8vo 9 ?> 54 2 9 Imperial 8vo - 10 ? J 7 3 9 Demy 4to _ _ _ - - 9l )? 7 3 Medium 4to _ _ _ - - loi 8 3 9 Royal 4to - _ _ - - 111 9 4 6 Super-Royal 4to - 13 ?? 9 5 Imperial 4to - - - - - Hi 10 6 6 The above are made of Hot-pressed" paper, unless "not" is specially ordered. POCKET SKETCH BOOKS. MADE OF HOLLINGWORTH'S FINE DRAWING PAPERS. Quarter-bound, with Sketches " in gold mediaeval characters on the cover, Cloth sides. Roan Backs, and Elastic Band. Thirty-six Leaves. 5. u. 5y inches by 4^ - Each i o 9 5f - - I 6 Royal i6mo Royal 8vo 12 BLACK LEAD PENCILS. PRSZE MEDAL AWARDED INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION, 1862. GEORGE ROWNEY & CO.'S IMPROVED DRAWING PENCILS. Neatly got up in Polished Cedar, in order to prevent the lead dust adhering to the Pencil, and consequently soiling the fingers. H Hard for Sketching HB Hard and Black HH Harder for Outlines B Black for Shading HHH Very Hard for Architects BB Softer and very Black HHHH Extra Hard for Engineers F Firm for Ordinary Drawing 23. per Dozen. EXTRA LETTERS, MOST CAREFULLY PREPARED. EHB Extra Hard and Black DEHB Ditto, ditto, extra Thick Lead FF Very Firm and Double Thick Lead BBB Softer and Very Black, Double Thick Lead BBBB Extra Soft and Black, 6d. each, or 5s. 6d. per dozen. BBBBBBB Very Broad and Black Lead, is. each, or los. per dozen. 4s. per dozen. THE IMPROVED PENCILS. MAY BE HAD IN SETS, AS FOLLOWS : 3 Pencils in Roan Case . . . . . . . . each I 4 Ditto in ditto I 3 7 Ditto in ditto ?> 2 3 7 Ditto in ditto, divided and lettered • • >> 3 7 Ditto in Embossed Gilt Morocco Case 6 12 Pencils, a Full Set, comprising 4 extra letters, in Roan Case, divided and lettered each 5 6 12 Ditto, a Full Set, in Embossed Gilt Morocco Case >) 1 1 Messrs. Rownev & Co. have every confidence in recommending their IMPROVED DRAWING PENCILS to the notice of the Profession, their moderate price and superior quality being sufficient to give them a decided pre- ference with the public. ROWNEY'S EVER-POINTED DRAWING PENCILS. H, HB, B & BB. Each degree is polished in a different colour, is. each. Leads only, 2s. per dozen. Cases containing Four Pencils, 4s. per Case. The fault of all Pencils of this description has been hitherto their inability to resist the pressure necessary in drawing. The above Pencils are free from this defect, and are exceedingly light in the hand. PENCIL MANUFACTURERS TO HER MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICES AND SCHOOLS OF DESIGN. 13 GEO. ROWNEY & CO.'S PENNY DRAWING PENCILS. With the view of enabling the working classes to avail themselves of the advantages presented by the many Schools of Design and Classes recently opened for the instruction of Drawing in its various branches, and to supply themselves with good materials at a low price, Messrs. R. & Co. have devoted their attention to the production of a Penny Drawing Pencil, of a quality sufficiently good for general purposes. The Pencils are manufactured of Four Degrees — Hard, Middle, Soft, and very Soft, in polished and coloured Cedar. H Hard, in plain Cedar, polished HB Middle, coloured red, ,, B Soft, coloured dark, red, BB Very Soft, coloured black ,, Each Pencil is stamped in Silver, thus—'' GEOR 10 6 5> 36 - - - ?> 15 72 - - - " >> I 10 5, 144 - - - 3 15 GEORGE ROWNEY & CO.'S BRUSHES FOR WATER-COLOUR DRAWING. SABLE HAIR PENCILS. LARGE DUCK. SMALL GOOSE. -=^=(^ GOOSE DOME-POINTED. TIED WITH GOLD WIRE. Large eagle Small eagle Extra large swan Large swan Middle swan Small swan Extra small swan Extra large goose Large goose Goose Small goose Large duck Duck Crow Miniature each RED. BROWN. S. d. S. d. i8 9 15 7 6 7 6 6 o 6 5 o 4 6 3 9 3 3 o 2 3 2 O I 6 I 8 ^ 3 I 3 I I o 9 o 9 8 8 6 o 4 4 5 4 RED SABLE BRUSHES. IN GERMAN SILVER FERRULES, AND POLISHED HANDLES. No. I Round or flat each VERY FINE QUALITY. S. d. lO 1 I I 4- No. 4 Round or flat 5 6 each s. d. 1 9 2 O 2 3 I? CAMEL HAIR BRUSHES. Large Swan Quill Camels Small Swan Quill Camels 4.d. each. 3d. each. Extra Small Swan Quill Camels 2d. each. Full Goose Camels -------- 2d. each. A B C D E F G H I J K L FRENCH CAMEL HAIR BRUSHES. Small Crow Crow Duck Large Duck Small Goose Goose Large Goose Swan, No. i 3 4 5 each No. I » 3 FRENCH CAMEL HAIR IN TIN. FLAT OR ROUND, d. I 3 I No. 4 - 4 1 „ 5 - - 5 „ 6 - - Each Each SKETCHING UMBRELLAS. Cane Ribs. Each. d. 4 2 2 2 2 3 8 Made of Brown Holland, or Jeannette, length of ribs 28| inches j Ditto, with Fan Joint, length of ribs 28! inches - i Made of Brown Holland, &c., length of ribs 32 inches i Ditto, with Fan Joint, length of ribs 32 inches - i With Bamboo Sticks, zs. T,d. d. £ 9 9 3 3 Paragon Frames. l*^ach. 8 6 II 6 10 9 13 9 i8 PORTABLE SKETCHING EASEL, IN CASE. s. d. Ash, 5 feet or 6 feet _______ each 9 9 Mahogany, or Walnut-Wood, 5 feet - - - - - 126 ?j ?> ^ „ - - _ _ o French polished, 5,, - - - - - 173 „ j> 6 „-----„ 19 o THE GERMAN SKETCHING SEAT & EASEL COMBINED. ADAPTED FOR EITHER OIL OR WATER-COLOUR SKETCHING. Price each. THE EASEL, OPEN. The same principle has been adapted for the use of Ladies, and is equally serviceable and portable. Price 13s. od. each. With extra strong leather seat, 3s. 9d. additional. KNAPSACK EASEL. Similar to the German Easel, with the addition of a waterproof case and straps. The interior has sufficient space to contain the requisites of a walking tour. Price £^ 9s. 6d. each. SQUARE SEAT, SIMILAR TO THE ABOVE ILLUSTRATION, Without the Easel, Price iis. 9d. each. Extra strong seat 3s. 9d. additional. 19 JAPANNED WATER BOTTLES. FOR CARRYING A SUPPLY OF WATER FOR SKETCHING, WITH CUPS TO FIT ON THE PALETTE OR BOX. JaI'AN i\ED Water P.otti.ks and Cups .. .. .. each MiDDl.K SIZE DITTO . . Large size ditto Oval ditio, plated inside Ditto, ditio, i.ar(;eu Ditto, ditto, imitation, plated inside, smai. LARGE KLAT 20 GEORGE ROWNEY & GO.'S PORTABLE TENTS, The advantages of these Tents, consisting of their portabiiity and Hght weight wlien packed and their strength and spaciousness when pitched, are much appreciated by artists. Size of Smai.i. Tjint when set up .. .. .. 4 keet square, 7 feet high PACKED . . 4 inches BY 4 INCHES, 4 FEE')' 4 INCHES LONG Weight, about 12 lbs. Price, including Case, ^3 3s. Size of Large Tent when set up .. .. 7 fhet by 4 feet 6, 7 fee'i- high ,, J'ACKED .. 5 inches BY 5 INCHES, 4 FEET 6 INCHES LONG Weight, ahoui 20 i.i'.s. PjvMce, including Case, ^3 18s. GEORGE ROWNEY & CO.'S REATISES ON THE FINE ARTS. By G. Harley By E. L. -^UIDE TO WATER-COLOUR PAINTING. By R. P. Noble. With an Illustration in Colours. 10th Edition GUIDE TO SKETCHING EROM NATURE. By Leonidas Clint Miles .... HINTS FOR SKETCHING TREES FROM NATURE IN WATER COLOURS. Bv Thomas Hatton. With Illustra- tions. 3rd Edition . . . GUIDE TO OIL PAINTING. By J. S. Templeton. 10th Edition GUIDE TO OIL PAINTING. PartIL (Landscape from Nature.) By A. Clint GUIDE TO LIGHT AND SHADE DRAWING. By Mrg. m! Merrifjeld. With Illustrations GUIDE TO PENCIL AND CHALK DRAWING 8th Edition. With Illustrations . GUIDE TO PICTORIAL ART. By H. O'Neil. 5th Edition . GUIDE TO LEVELLING AND SURVEYING. By W. Pease GUIDE TO PICTORIAL PERSPECTIVE. By B. R. Green. With Illustrations *PERSPECTI\^E PRACTICALLY EXPLAINED, Paraire. With nearly 100 Illustrations Extra cloth and gilt PRINCIPLES OF PERSPECTIVE. By Henry Lewis ! GREEN'S ILLUSTRATIONS OF PERSPECTIVE. A new Edition. Size, 12 by 9. Bound in Cloth .... GUIDE TO FIGURE DRAWING. By G. E. Hicks. With Illustrations. 3rd Edition GUIDE TO FIGURE PAINTING IN WATER COLOURS. By Sydney T. VVhiteford . GUIDE TO FLOWER PAINTING IN WATER COLOURs! By G. Rosenberg. With Illustrations GUIDE TO PAINTING ON GLASS. By H. Bielfeld . GUIDE TO MINIATURE PAINTING AND COLOURING PHOTOGRAPHS. By J. S. Templeton .... ON THE MATERIALS USED IN PAINTING, with Remarks on Varnishing and Cleaning Pictures. By Charles Martel . GUIDE TO ANIMAL DRAWING. With numerous Illustra- tion^. By C. H. Weigall . . . . . . GUIDE T0'ILLU^^NATING A% Ml'SSAL PAINTINg! By W. and G. Audsley. With ifustrations in Colours . Or extra bound with gilt edges, &c., with additional Illustrations. A PRACTICAL MANUAL OF HERALDRY AND OF HER- ALDIC ILLUMINATION, &c. By G. J. Baigent and C. J. Russell. With Illustrations in Colours. Bound in cloth and gilt THEORY OF COLOURING. By J. Bacon. With Six lUustra- tions in Colours. Bound in cloth and gilt .... Each s. d. 1 1 1 1 1 I 1 1 1 1 1 2 6 1 12 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 6 6 2 6 * Recommended by the Department of Science and Art, South Kensington Museum. Henderson, Rait, & Fenton, Printers, 23, Berners Street, Oxford Street, W.