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As we struggle to learn our craft we attend classes, take workshops, and read magazines or books. But there’s one invaluable practice that’s often overlooked: copying masterworks.

 

In the 18^th and 19^th centuries, after students had completed the rigorous course work at the Ecole des Beaux-arts or other European art schools, they were sent off to copy masterworks in the Louvre or the Prado. Sargent, Zorn, and Sorolla all trekked to Madrid to copy Velasquez (in fact Sargent carried his copies with him all his life). Most of today’s professional have also copied other artists.

 

Why make copies?

• To understand the master’s thought process - All the decisions about composition, color, edge treatment, and technique have already been made; our task is simply to “reverse engineer” the process.
• To cement our insights – I can read about an artist and study a particular work, but if I want to retain the information I have to paint or draw it. It’s almost as if the info travels through my brush, up my arm and into my brain.
• To get inspired - It’s a rush to suddenly understand how an effect was created.

 

Some tips:

• Don’t just copy spot for spot. Try to reason out the  process. What did the artist do first? Second? Why?
• Decide what you’re trying to learn from the piece and focus on that. For example, if you’re trying to understand Sorolla’s use of color temperature, don’t get hung up on the drawing.
• Remember, the goal isn’t to make a forgery; it’s to understand the master’s thought process.

 

Some students say “I don’t want to copy masters because I want to develop my own style.” Don’t worry about it. Your style will come. Think of musicians; the great rock guitarists all learned by copying B.B King, Robert Johnson, Django Reinhardt etc. It’s how knowledge accumulates over the years.

 

Here are a couple of my recent copies: a Sargent watercolor and a Fechin portrait. With both of these my goal was not to make a perfect imitation but rather to understand as best I could the artist’s thoughts and procedure. I think I accomplished that in these short exercises.

 

I was astounded at how Sargent simplified the painting into (I think) three washes. The drawing is fairly complex, but manageable.  I think he put down a first wash of raw sienna and when that was almost dry put in the overall shadow pattern with ultramarine blue and maybe a touch of violet. I think the final step was to put in all the details as dark accents.

 

With the Fechin piece I wanted to see if the broken edge effects could translate from oil into pastel.

 

By the way, here are the originals.

 

 

 

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