Baby Roma Tomato

Mixed media (oil and acrylic) on canvas panel, 6x6"

I tried something a little different with this one. I don't typically do underpaintings, but with all I'm learning from the Renaissance painting class, I thought I'd see what I could incorporate into a more direct painting. I first did a layer of burnt umber acrylic paint for the darkest parts of the background and some of the shading on the tomato. That dried while I cleaned out my brushes. Then I went in with my oils and painted the whole thing the way I normally would. The background is the same color of green throughout, but the bottom layer of dark brown resulted in some dramatic shadows. It made for a rather neat effect, something I'll keep in mind for future paintings. Waiting fifteen minutes for an acrylic underpainting to dry certainly beats waiting several days for the same underpainting to dry in oils!