Work continues on my experiment in nonmetallic painting with this figure. If you look back at my last post you will see that a basecoat of black had been applied to the bascinet and mail. In the photos above you can see the next step as I gradually worked from bottom to top of the helmet applying white to begin bringing up my mid tones. I also worked a bit more white into the lower rim of the helm. This tone should run in a line where the brightest light reflects off the helm at the same time it gets lighter moving up the helm.
Once dry I began to apply some light washes of reflected color. Unlike chrome or a mirror you wouldn't see a true reflected image, simply hints of tonal values in the color of the steel. If you think about what would be reflected in the helm you would say maybe sky on top, reflections of the surrounding ground in the lower portions and any colors that might be in the immediate area on the figure itself. With that in mind I applied a light wash of Cerulean Blue on the crown/front of the helm to reflect a blue sky and keep with the cool tones that will be seen in the blue surcoat and green peacock feathers. A mixture of Cadmium Maroon and Van Dyke Brown was applied as a wash to indicate reflected ground and lastly a clear green wash was applied on the side of the helmet nearest the peacock feathers on the great helm in his right arm. I also worked a bit of that thin wash of green to the mail near the feathers as well as some of the blue on the left shoulder and back to hint at reflected sky again. As I begin to apply thinned white to pull out the reflected hot spots these thin colors should augment the color of the metal without reading as spots of color. If they begin to wash out I will apply more reflected colors.
At this point I also have begun working on the brass nasal piece by applying a bit of Yellow Ochre and Burnt Sienna with a few Titanium white spots blended into the highlights wet-on-wet.
Once dry I played up some dark reflections with a bit of Lamp Black applied in a vertical line to the left of the nasal and rubbed in to the surface. This was also applied to the shadow area on the lower back of the helmet. Additionally I used a Mars Black wash on the raised details to pop them out more. Mars Black was also used on the nasal to apply shadows and separate it a bit more from the face. I also worked a bit more black into the areas of the mail that are under the chin.
Here is a photo of the whole figure so that you can see how the fence section and shield will fit on the base. The fence was made out of strip wood and washes of oil paint with some dry brushed highlights has been used to age and weather the fence. The Shield will be painted separately and fixed to the post at the end of the project. The fence has not been glued to the base so that I can easily paint the figure. It simply slides down onto a brass rod into a depression in the groundwork.
This is a fun project and I have to admit I am flying by the seat of my paints here. Once I get down to the great helm I should have the technique down a little better and the gold armor is something I've tackled before.
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