The Colour With No Name 4 of 7

Me: Laughing…’ I couldn’t have put it better Doc – yes – and the important thing in a scumble, is that the under painting shows and contributes. Generally all kinds of harmonic colours can appear, unless your scumbling something like a white over blue of course… Phew … you’ve got me having to remember stuff now – when I paint or draw I forget as much as possible, it’s in me now and I don’t want it in the way – I simply reach for things naturally when I need them – I still mess up though. That’s why you can teach people to paint, how to render stuff that will wow their friends – and very satisfying it is too – we all need time at that - but how they internalise it all, and find form for it within themselves is really up to them – even if your just having leisure fun – you want to own something of the skills – it’s a human thing – to be proud of hard won skills.
Dr Franklyn: ‘ Yes, that’s the way of things - I spent a few years when I had a practise in Barcelona, I was copying and doing my own versions of the Masereel black and whites – I couldn’t get enough, photocopiers had just become the norm and I spent hours reducing and enlarging seeing how far go, and drawing on the paper first sometimes and then photocopying over the top – good fun a new toy.’
Me: Laughing ‘Yes good old photocopy art - all the rage at one time. Masereel would have had a state of the art machine I think – but he didn’t need one, he is one of the truly greats Doc - I spent a long time with his work too, but let me finish this scumble thing for now...
The optical effect of a glaze is generally to retain or enhance clarity,the optical effect of scumbling,putting on thin layers of opaque paint; is to loose clarity,and to often give atmosphere or texture. Sometimes it can be akin to a dry brush technique.’
Dr Franklyn: ‘ Yes, I thought so – all the great descriptive painters were great scumblers – Rembrandt, Franz Hals…you could go on forever… Question! - how do you paint flimsy material over flesh ?
Together: ‘ You scumble it…!’ Laughing.
Dr Franklyn: But you don’t use it like that do you?’