ORNAMENTAL PAINTING.
MONOGRAMS.
At the present time nearly all possessors of carriages have their
private marks painted on some part of the panels. These take the form
of monograms, initial letters, crests, and heraldic bearings or coats
of arms. The monogram is the commonest. For crests and coats of arms
a duty is levied, from which monograms are free.
A few examples are subjoined. They can be multiplied to any extent;
and designing monograms and initial letters would be excellent
practice for the apprentice.
[Illustration: Fig. 33.—V. A. C.]
Fig. 33.—Lay in C with dark blue, light blue, and chrome yellow, No.
2; lighted with A to be in Tuscan red, lighted with vermilion and
orange; V with olive green, lighted with a bright tint of olive green
and white. Separate the letters with a wash of asphaltum.
[Illustration: Fig. 34.—I. N. C.]
Fig. 34.—Paint C a tan colour shaded with burnt sienna, shaded with
asphaltum to form the darkest shades. Put in the high lights with
white toned with burnt sienna. Colour I with dark and light shades of
purple, lighted with pale orange; N to be lake colour lighted with
vermilion. The above may be varied by painting the upper half of the
letters with the colours named, and the lower portions in dark tints
of the same colour. When this is done, care must be taken to blend
the two shades, otherwise it will look as if the letters are cut in
two.
[Illustration: Fig. 35.—O. T. S.]
Fig. 35.—Paint the upper half of O a light olive green, and the lower
half a darker tone of the same colour; T to be lake, lighted with
vermilion above the division made by the letter S, no high lighting
to be used on the bottom portion of the stem; S to be painted red
brown, lighted with orange; or the colours may be laid on in gold
leaf, and the above colours glazed over it.
[Illustration: Fig. 36.—V. A. T.]
Fig. 36.—This combination forms a pleasing variety, and will afford
good practice in the use of the pencil. Lay in the letters as
indicated by the shading, the letter V to be darker than A, and
T deeper in tone than either V or A. The letters may all be laid
on with gold leaf, and afterwards glazed with colours to suit the
painter’s taste. The vine at the base may be a delicate green tinged
with carmine.
[Illustration: Fig. 37.—A. R. T.]
Fig. 37.—This is of French design. The letters furnish an odd yet
attractive style. It will be noticed that the stem of the letter T
covers the centre perpendicularly, and that the outer lower portions
of A and R are drawn to touch on the same line. The main stems of
these letters terminate in twin forms, arranged so as to cross each
other at the centre of the monogram and balance each other on either
side. In the matter of its colouring, it may be mentioned that the
letters in a monogram are very often painted all in one colour, and
separated at the edges by a streak of white or high light. Monograms
painted in this manner should be drawn so that the design will not be
confused by ornamentation; that is, the main outlines of each letter
should be distinctly defined, and the spaces must be so arranged as
not to confuse the outlines. The pattern here given may be coloured
carmine, and the edges separated by straw colour or blue, and the
letters be defined by canary colour, or a lighter tint of blue than
the bodies of the letters are painted.
[Illustration: Fig. 38.—T. O. M.]
Fig. 38.—If the ground colour of the panels is claret or purple
the letters may be painted with the same colour, lightened up with
vermilion and white, forming three distinct tints; on brown, coat the
letters with lighter shades of brown; and so on with other colours.
INITIAL LETTERS.
A well painted initial letter is certainly quite equal to a monogram;
but then it must be well painted, because, as it stands alone, it has
only itself to rely upon for any effect, whereas, in a monogram, the
component letters mutually assist each other.
[Illustration: Fig. 39.—D.]
Fig. 39.—This letter possesses all the grace of outline that could
be desired in a single letter. Paint the letter in gold, shaded with
asphaltum and lighted with white. If a colour be used, have one that
agrees in tone with the striping on the carriage part; that is to
say, if blue be used in striping, then use the same kind of blue for
the letter, and so on with other colours.
We may here mention that all this kind of painting is done on the
last rubbing coat of varnish, so that the letters receive a coat of
varnish when the finishing coat is given.
[Illustration: Fig. 40.—S.]
Fig. 40.—The natural form of this letter is graceful, being composed
of curves bearing in opposite directions, and which blend into each
other, forming a continuous but varied line. The ornamentation also
falls into the shape of the letter naturally. The upper and lower
ends of the letter terminate in three stems, covered by three-lobed
leafing, and the main stem of the letter is preserved in shape by
appearing to grow out naturally from its outer and inner edges.
Lay in the letter with gold, on which work out the design with
transparent colours. If colours only be employed the panel colour may
be taken as part of the colouring of the letter; for instance, if the
panel be dark brown, lake, blue, or green, mix up lighter tints of
whichever colour it may be, and considering the panel colour as the
darkest shade, lighten up from it.
[Illustration: Fig. 41.—V.]
Fig. 41.—This letter will please by the novelty of its ornamentation.
The body of the letter retains its natural outline almost wholly.
From the upper part of the thin stem springs a scroll, which curves
downward, reaching to the middle of the letter, and from this grows
out a second scroll, serving to ornament the lower portions.
Lay in the colour in harmony with the striping colour, deepening the
tone of the colour on the stem of the letter, as shown by the shade
lines. The leafing should be made out with light, medium, and dark
tints, blended into each other so as to avoid the scratchy appearance
which an opposite method produces.
CRESTS AND HERALDIC BEARINGS.
It would be impossible to give anything like a comprehensive series
of these in this, or indeed in a very much larger work, as their
number and variety are so great. The examples subjoined are given
as exercises in colouring; and, if the student desires to extend
his studies in this direction, most stationers will supply him with
sheets of them at a trifling cost, and to them he may apply the
principles enumerated below.
[Illustration: Fig. 42.]
Fig. 42.—This is a small ornament, but it will disclose to the
painter whether he has got hold of the method of handling the
“cutting-up pencil.” If, in attempting the circular part, the hand
becomes inclined to be unsteady in its motion, and create a lack of
confidence, the painter should practise until assured that the hand
will obey the will.
The ornamental part to be gold, shaded with asphaltum, and high
light with a delicate pink, composed of flake white and light red.
The wreaths may be painted blue and white. Mix up three lines of
blue, placing the darkest at the bottom or lower part of each band
shown, as shaded in the figure. The white bands should not be of pure
white, but a light grey, made by mixing a little black with the white
colour. For the high light running along the centre of the wreath,
use white tinted with yellow. The space covered with diagonal lines
may either be left plain, showing the panel colour, or barred across
with grey lines made of flake white and black, tinged with carmine.
[Illustration: Fig. 43.]
Fig. 43.—This is the letter V combined with a garter. Size in the
entire pattern, and lay the pattern in with gold, and glaze over the
inner part of the garter with a light blue, the inner and outer edges
to remain gold. The flying ribbon to be pink, composed of carmine and
white, and the shading to be clear carmine, with carmine saddened
with black for the deeper tones. The stems of the letter V to be
green, shaded with a reddish brown, and the leafing to be the same
colours.
[Illustration: Fig. 44.]
Fig. 44.—Paint the cap crimson, the wreath green and grey, lighted
with a delicate pink. The circular part to be gold, shaded with
asphaltum tinted with carmine; the outside border of shield to be
gold also; the upper division of the shield to be red, deep and rich
in tone. The chevron, or white angular band across the shield, to be
a grey, lighted up with pure white. The lower division of the shield
to be blue, and the deep shades to be purple. Paint the leafing at
the base with a colour mixed of burnt umber, yellow, and lake; shade
with asphaltum tinted with carmine, and put in the high lights with
orange or vermilion.
[Illustration: Fig. 45.]
Fig. 45.—This is from a design by Gustave Doré. It is an odd but
still pretty design. Lay in the whole of the pattern in gold; shade
the details with verdigris darkened with asphaltum; put in the high
lights with pink, composed of light red and white. The escutcheon may
be coloured with light brown, carmine, and dark brown. The edges of
the diagonal bar to be dotted minutely with vermilion.
[Illustration: Fig. 46.]
Fig. 46.—Outline the garter with gold; the buckle and slide to be
gold also. Fill in the garter with light and dark tints of blue, and
put in the high lights with canary colour. Paint the floral gorgons
in brown shades, and light with orange and clear yellow. A small
portion of lake added to these browns will cause them to bear out
richly when varnished. Let the medium lights and shades predominate,
and the high lights added, first carefully considering their true
positions, and then touching them in with sharp strokes of the
pencil, which will give life and “go” to the details. The pendent
stems with leaves and berries may be coloured olive green, and shaded
with russet. When the painting of this ornament is dry it will be
considerably improved by glazing.
Fig. 47.—The central pattern is _Caduceus_, a Roman emblem. On the
rod or centre staff the wings are represented “displayed,” and the
two serpents turning round it signify _power_, the wings _fleetness_,
and the serpents _wisdom_.
This pattern would look well in gold, with the dark parts shaded with
black to the depths shown on the sketch; the lighter tones being
greys, warm in tone. The serpents may be put in with carmine, as also
the wings and head, and the rod carmine deepened with black.
[Illustration: Fig. 47.]
Various treatments of colouring may be applied to this pattern,
and thinking out some of these will be very good exercise for the
ingenuity of the painter.
[Illustration: Fig. 48.]
Fig. 48.—Put the pattern in in gold, separating the parts where
necessary with shadow lines, and produce the effect of interlacing by
a judicious use of high light lines and deep black lines. The best
pencil suited to this class of ornament is a “cutting-up” pencil
an inch long. Having traced the pattern on the panel, commence by
painting the crest, and next the main upper left-hand division of the
scroll part, paying no attention to the leafing or minor details. It
will be noticed that the centre line of the heavy leafing is a part
of the scroll line, which passes from the wreath or ribbon at the
top, and is completed at the base; so that to secure easy curves this
line should be laid in through its whole length, and the leafing or
any minor dividing lines be governed by it. Next lay in the other
half of the pattern in the same manner, and having secured these main
curves the subordinate details may be added.
Where two fine lines cross each other, the effect of one line
passing underneath the other may be produced by simply lighting one
of the lines across the intersection, which by contrast will make the
gold or colour of the other line appear darker, and as though the
lighted line passed over it and cast a shadow.
Paint the wreath blue and white, the crest to be merely lighted with
the colour used for high lighting the other parts.
[Illustration: Fig. 49.]
Fig. 49.—This consists of a species of dragon, having the head, neck,
and wings of a bird, and the body of a wild beast. He supports a
Norman shield, the “fess” or centre part displaying a Maltese cross.
In painting this ornament, first get a correct outline of the whole;
then mix up two or three tints of the colour you design painting it,
having a pencil for each, and a clean pencil for blending the edges,
so that no hard lines may appear at the junction of the different
colours. Lay on the shaded portions first, then the half lights,
keeping them subdued in tone, so as to allow for the finishing
touches showing clear and distinct.
On a claret-colour panel the whole may be painted in different hues
of purple and red. On a dark blue panel, varying shades of blue
lighter than the groundwork, and so with other colours. The shaded
portion must be distinct, and gradually connected with the lighter
portions by light tints of the shading colour.
Or the dragon may be painted grey, the high lights with the same
colour warmed up with yellow; the outline of the shield in gold;
the upper division, a light cobalt blue; the lower division, a pale
orange; the cross, brown, shaded with asphaltum; the wreath, blue and
white; and the flying ribbon and leafing in gold.