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Skin Tones

Skin Tones

 

by Phil Kessling


Black Skin Tones 

 It’s important to consider the region the subject is from and then attempt to locate photos as references. Nubian skin tones are a very dark, bluish black whereas Zulu skin tones are a much warmer yellow brown.

For the warmer black skin tones, I like to start with a base color of Mars Brown + Cad. Yellow + Brown Madder + Tit. White. I shade with Mars Brown + Brown Madder; deep shadows are Sepia. For highlights, Mars yellow with just a dab of Cad. Red. Add Tit. White for the light highlights.

For the darker Nubian skin tones, I use a base color of Burnt Umber + Indigo + Tit. White. Shade with Burnt Umber + Indigo; deep shadows are Sepia + Blue Black. For the highlights, I use the base + more Tit. White.

The best black skin tones that I have ever seen was on a Zulu bust done by Kevin Golden. Here’s how he did it:

“Black skin has always been easy for me to paint, and I use a simple formula. I choose a base coat of any particular brown that suites me since there is such a wide variety of black complexions. For dark complexions I shade with Burnt Umber mixed with Mars Black. I highlight with Mars Orange and come back again with Naples Yellow. For super highlights I use just a touch of white sparingly.”

” For lighter complexions I use the same formula except without the Mars Black mixed in the Burnt Umber. For very light complexions I use the same shading and highlight hues I use on Caucasian skin; shading with Burnt Umber and Burnt Sienna and highlighting with Naples Yellow and/or a light flesh hue mixed with white. Again, white used sparingly as a super highlight. “

“Sometimes for the very light complexions I’ll add a thin glaze of a color called Brown Pink by Grumbacher for an added warmth to the over all hue. Since I paint in acrylics also, I’ll mix and use colors that closely match the oil colors. Vallejo has a Burnt Umber and Vallejo’s Cavalry Brown mixed with a little yellow closely approximates Mars Orange. Vallejo’s Orange Brown can be used in place of this mixture and Dark Flesh by Vallejo I’ll use in place of Naples Yellow. I’ll use white again where needed as a super highlight [again sparingly]. All these colors I adjust as I see fit (I never paint any two figures exactly the same). In acrylics I shade and highlight these colors with washes.”

 

Japanese Skin Tones 

To get a Japanese skin tone, I mix a little more Mars Yellow into my normal skin colors. To get some ideas a good reference to pull out is National Geographic magazines with photos of Japanese. This is always a good idea when painting ethnic faces.

When I painted the Amati 75 mm Samurai, I used:

Base: Cad. Yellow + Mars Yellow + Aliz. Crimson + Tit. White

Shad: Mars Orange

Dp Shad: Mars Brown + Brown Madder

High: Base + Cad. Yellow + Mars Yellow + Tit. White

Lt High: High + more Tit White

Phil Kessling is a graduate of Tulane University and a former F-14 Tomcat RIO. He is a critically acclaimed miniature painter, author of Osprey Publications Battle Honours, and a contributing editor to Historical Miniatures magazine.


 

 

Native American Skin Tones 

I used the following colors on Bonaparte’s 200 mm Indian Woman bust: Undercoat: Liquitex Deep Portrait Pink + Liquitex Burnt Sienna jar acrylics.

Oil Base: Mars Brown + Cadmium Yellow Pale + Jaune + dab Mars Red + Titanium White + 2 drops of Stand Oil

Shad: Base + Mars Brown + Mars Violet

Deep Shadow: Brown Madder Alizarin

High Highlight: Base + Jaune + Titanium White

Light Highlight: High + Titanium White

After dry, deep shadows of Brown Madder + Sepia; Light Highs: a mix of the original High and Light High.

Lips: base-Mars Red + Face shadow color

Shadow- Purple Madder

High- Jaune + TW

I also painted Poste Militaire’s Cheyenne Wolfscout several years ago using the following mixtures.

Base: Mars Brown + Cad. Yellow + Indian Red + Titanium White

Shadows: base + Mars Violet

Deep Shadows: Brown Madder + Sepia

High highlight: Base + Cad. Yellow + TW

Light Highlight: Titanium White

These are simply mixes that I have used. There is no right or wrong color. Part of the fun of painting with oils is mixing colors. You never know what you are going to end up with!

 

Phil Kessling is a  critically acclaimed miniature painter, author of Osprey Publications Battle Honours, and a contributing editor to Historical Miniatures magazine.




 

 

 

 

Phil Kessling is a graduate of Tulane University and a former F-14 Tomcat RIO. He is a critically acclaimed miniature painter, author of Osprey Publications Battle Honours, and a contributing editor to Historical Miniatures magazine.