Underpainting vs No Underpainting in Oils: Why I Start with One

One of my most watched videos on YouTube is Underpainting VS No Underpainting. I painted the same pear twice: once straight onto the canvas, and once over an underpainting.

You can see the difference for yourself in the video, but here's what the underpainting is actually doing.

What is an underpainting?

An underpainting is a thin first layer in one colour, usually a brown like raw umber. It's where I sort out the drawing and the lights and darks before any colour goes on.

Why I start with one

• The drawing is locked in, so I'm not fixing shapes while I'm mixing colour
• The lights and darks are already there, so my four tonal values go on with confidence
• A toned surface is far less daunting than a bright white canvas
• The colour layers have something to sit on, and it shows in the finished painting

Do you always need one?

No. I paint alla prima too, straight in with no underpainting, and it's a lovely way to work. But when I'm teaching, the underpainting is where I start, because it takes so much of the guesswork out.

Try it yourself

My free Underpainting VS No Underpainting tracing pack has the pear tracing and reference photo, so you can paint it both ways and see what you think.

Save it for later

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