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Don't start painting until everything is within arm's reach. Once your hands have paint on them, you don't want to be searching for a brush or a rag. Treat this like surgery prep — everything laid out, clean, ready. Check off each item below as you gather it.
Your most-used colour. The entire canvas starts black. Background stays black. Two tubes minimum. If you buy one, you will run out halfway through.
Used sparingly — only for highlights and brightest flesh. When you use it, keep it thick and pure. No medium added. Like squeezing toothpaste onto a surface.
Natural earth pigment. Colour of dry sand or unglazed pottery. The warm foundation of every skin tone. Mixed with white it becomes flesh base.
Warmer than Yellow Ochre — like dark honey or wet sand at sunset. Essential for Caravaggio's olive Mediterranean skin. Also used thinned for the light sketch.
Warm opaque red. Use like hot sauce — a tiny drop at a time. Adds blush where blood is close to the surface: ears, lips, nostrils, the narrow warm edge where light turns to shadow.
Warm dark earth — like dark chocolate. For reinforcing edges between light and shadow. Added to black ground mix to warm it slightly.
Cooler and greener than Burnt Umber — like cold mud after rain. Mixed with Ivory Black for the absolute deepest darks. The void behind the figure.
The filbert has a rounded tip like your fingertip. Hold it like a pencil near the tip for details, or at the end of the handle for bold sweeping strokes — like a conductor holding a baton. Hog bristle is stiff enough to push thick paint. Size 8 for the black ground. Size 6 for modelling flesh.
For the eyes, catch light, and the narrow warm band. Hold it like a pen, close to the metal ferrule. The tip must come to a single sharp point — test before buying by wetting the tip. If it splays into two points, it is useless.
For mixing paint on the palette — never mix with your painting brush, it destroys the bristles and muddies colour. Think of it like a butter knife: scoop, fold, spread. Also for scraping mistakes off wet canvas — slide flat against the surface like scraping ice off a windshield.
Triple-primed cotton canvas. Big enough to see brushwork from across the room, small enough to finish in one session. The white priming disappears under the black ground. Avoid cheap single-primed canvas — paint soaks through like water into a sponge.
Alkyd medium. A few drops mixed into paint makes it flow like cream and dry in hours instead of days. Essential for the black ground which needs to set quickly. Do not use too much — paint becomes glassy and slides around. Three drops per walnut of paint.
For cleaning brushes ONLY. Not for thinning paint on canvas. Pour a small amount into a jar — like a shot glass worth. Dip the brush, wipe on rag, dip, wipe. Gamsol is safest — nearly odourless, low toxicity. Open a window anyway.
Tear-off paper sheets. Grey tone lets you judge colour accurately — a white palette tricks your eye into thinking every mix is too dark. Fresh sheet every session. Like baking paper for paint — use it and throw it away.
For wiping brushes, smoothing the black ground, wiping mistakes. You will use more than you think. Keep a full roll within arm's reach. Old cotton t-shirts cut into hand-sized squares also work perfectly.
Open VOLUX studio. Upload your photo. Click Caravaggio. Display the result on a tablet, phone, or print it on paper. Place it next to your canvas where you can glance at it constantly without turning your head. This shows exactly where light falls.
A4 PDF with your ticks. Save it, share it, or print it.
Easel or table? An easel is ideal — it keeps the canvas at eye level and lets you step back easily. But a table works fine if you prop the canvas at a slight angle.
Lighting is critical for Caravaggio. You need ONE strong light source from the upper left — a desk lamp, clamp light, or single window with all other curtains closed. Turn off every other light. Your room should be as dark as possible. You are recreating Caravaggio's actual studio: one window, darkness everywhere else. If you can see a single sharp shadow on the wall from your light, you have the right setup.
How to hold your brush. Not squeezed tight like a pen. Grip it in the middle of the handle — like holding a conductor's baton. For bold strokes, move your whole arm from the shoulder. Your wrist does detail work. Your shoulder does confidence. If your hand cramps, you are gripping too hard. Relax. The brush does the work, not your muscles.
Lighting. Natural daylight from a window is best. If painting at night, use a daylight-balanced bulb (5000-6500K) positioned to your left. Never paint under warm yellow tungsten light — it shifts all your colour decisions warm, and the painting looks wrong in daylight.
Your device. Place your phone or tablet where you can see the VOLUX reference. Prop it 30-60cm from your painting spot, screen facing you.
Choose only one master — Nature.
Attributed to Rembrandt van RijnEach step expands when you tap it. Take as long as you need, and move on only when you're satisfied with your work.