Portraiture Meets Figure Painting

Portraiture Meets Figure Painting

Alain Picard is well-known for his portraits, but the care and artistry he brings to his portraiture is also evident in his figure work. Even a subtle gesture of a woman seated on some stone steps comes to life with the way he paints his figures, using painterly strokes for a soft background to make his subject stand out.

	Figure painting by Alain Picard.

"We paint the light that falls on the subject," Alain says, and that gives form and dimension to the subject he's painting, whether it's a still life, portrait, landscape or a figure. That is evident in his video, Painting the Figure in Pastel, where he demonstrates his figure painting techniques step-by-step, making it easy to follow along and pick up the methods he uses to capture the light as he paints a picture of his wife from a photograph.

Alain demonstrates how to simplify the subject and capture the gesture she is making, and with each step, he shows how to establish edges, paint dark to light, and create an underpainting along with picking up several compositional tips and other pastel techniques along the way.

Alain's instruction gives everyone the opportunity to improve their figure painting skills, because the lessons he imparts can be practiced over and over. It's all about breaking down the image into simplified shapes, and then working methodically, layer by layer, to create form.

Preview Painting the Figure in Pastel at ArtistsNetwork.tv to get a glimpse of how Alain masses in the darks, uses a hard pastel to establish skin tone, and builds up layers to create a stunning figure painting. Then, watch the full video or purchase the download or DVD at the North Light Shop.

–Vanessa