Woman with a Parasol - Claude Monet - National Gallery of Art

Woman with a Parasol by Claude Monet

Copied at the National Gallery of Art by Maria Bennett Hock

Work in Progress

I continue to paint and learn and learn and paint.  As I arrived at the National Gallery of Art on Wednesday I noticed the crowds seemed to be quite thin...I anticipated fewer interruptions and more work done!  

Today's work entailed tackling the grassy hillside...again.  It has been a challenge.  Monet's palette is getting to be more familiar...I am getting comfortable mixing the colors and adapting to his style a bit.  After working most of the morning on the greens I decided to work on the clouds a bit.  I first had to darken the lady's dress and brighten the sky around it...get the values correct before I could tackle to brightness of the clouds.  

If I were to choose the most difficult part of painting this piece it would be to try to match the spontaneity of the brush strokes.  It is said that Monet completed this piece in one setting so I imagine him moving furiously through the piece placing brushstrokes carefully but quickly.  To reproduce that same spontaneous feel is a challenge.  

When I want to get an idea of how I am doing I pull out my cell phone and look at my copy next to the real thing through my viewfinder.  It shows me values and shapes. I have to step back to see everything...and that is when the tourists get me!!!  I can stay pretty focused at my easel but when I step back I get asked questions, get comments etc  BUT ...the topper was today.  A young man asked me how to oil paint. I told him to get some paints and just start...take lessons...just dive in.  He kept pressing me for what colors to purchase (the three primary colors, white and black to start), what to paint on, (boards, canvas paper, whatever you can get to start) and how I learned (practice, practice, practice).  It look me a while to skirt around him and get back to my easel!  Ah the hazards of the amazing experience of painting at the National Gallery of Art!   I need to pinch myself to make sure this is not a dream!   

Lady with a Parasol - Monet today

I am copying  "Woman with a Parasol" by Claude Monet at the National Gallery of Art.  Monet painted his wife and son on a family outing.  It is thought that he completed the painting in one sitting and the portrayal was meant to be a casual setting rather than a formal portrait.  

I, on the other hand, have been working on copying this piece for a month now and this is how far I have gotten.  I worked on the sky quite a bit today and while painting "quell horror" I noticed the bottom of the dress was not close enough to the boy!  So I worked on that too...reworking the skirt folds and swirls.  

The things I am really working on with this piece are the palette and brushstrokes.  Monet's palette is quite different for me.  I long for yellow ochre...but I am getting used to his colors and getting better at mixing to get what I need. Such a good exercise for me.  The other big challenge is trying to capture the spontaneity of his strokes.  They seem to be haphazardly splashed on the canvas though I am sure more thought was given to their placement.  

I must say the National Gallery was crowded in spite of our frigid spring weather.  I had MANY more people ask me questions than ever before.  Asking if they could take pictures and about the copyist program.  I really had to concentrate to get anything done.  One little girl asked me how many of the paintings on the wall I had done.  I had to confess that I did none of the ones currently hanging at the gallery.  >sigh<  There were many people walking by quietly whispering "good job" which is nice.  Once lady told me "at least you got the umbrella right"...not sure how to take that.  All in all it was a great day and I am pleased with my progress.  

Adventures of copying Lady with a Parasol by Claude Monet - National Gallery of Art

When I select a painting to copy at the National Gallery of Art I always try to stretch myself.  I began this piece by Monet because I love it AND because the palette is so far out of my comfort zone.  Monet is said to have disliked browns!!!  I LOVE browns, ochres, umbers and all earth tones.  As I did my research about this piece I shuddered when I laid out this palette of colors.  They are:  Lead White, Cadmium yellow light, Cadmium Yellow, Viridian Green, Emerald Green, French Ultramarine, Cobalt Blue, Alizarin Crimson, Vermillion and Ivory Black.  I decided to only use those colors for this piece.  So, along with the challenge of copying this piece I am also mixing colors I am not too familiar with using colors I am not used to using.  It has given me the impetus to revisit making my own color charts as Richard Schmid suggests in his book "Alla Prima II"  Making color charts has been on my "to do" list for some time and this exercise has opened my eyes to the value of that task.  

 

Here is a picture of my painting and the original in the background.  As usual there was quite a bit of traffic through the gallery.  Many, many kind comments and well wishes from many, many different countries in many, many different languages.  One of the things I like best about living in the area is the diversity.