How to Paint a Trompe L'Oeil Arch
"Trompe l'oeil" literally means "deceives the eye." First applied to the hyperrealism of 18th-century artists like Caravaggio, the term now references any painting that "tricks" the viewer's brain into perceiving the image as three-dimensional. In addition to the three dimensions of the arch itself, many trompe-l'oeil arches include detailed 3-D scenes inside them. Although the hard work involved in a trompe-l'oeil painting often seems overwhelming, the arch is perhaps the least intimidating part to paint.
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Things You'll Need
- Blue painter's tape
- Measuring tape
- Pencil
- Acrylic paint, various colors
- Paintbrushes, various sizes
Instructions
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Print an 8.5-by-11-inch image of an arch you want to use in your painting. Use shape, color and three-dimensionality as criteria when selecting your arch image.
Selecting images of real objects allows you easy referencing until you familiarize yourself with hyperrealism.
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Tape a border around your "canvas" with blue painter's tape. Your canvas can be an entire wall, a portion of a wall or a small square inside a larger collage.
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Divide the "canvas" into 1-by-1-foot sections with your measuring tape. Mark each foot with your pencil. Draw lines connecting marks on opposite sides of the "canvas," creating a grid over the entire area.
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Divide your photograph, using your pencil, into the same number of sections as your wall, mimicking both width and height.
To prevent image distortion, make each section on your photograph a square.
For example, if your wall measures 9 feet high by 8 feet wide, you might find that 1-by-1-inch squares work best for your 8.5-by-11-inch photograph. Dividing this way only cuts 1/2 inch from the width and 2 inches from the length.
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Copy the arch onto your wall, using your pencil. Use each square of the photograph to guide you when sketching the corresponding wall square.
Gridding your picture helps prevent any mistakes caused by perspective problems such as height; it helps in creating accurate representations.
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Surround the entire exterior and interior of the arch with one strip of painter's tape. Surround only the arch itself.
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Marble arch Paint the arch -- the area inside the painter's tape. If you want a marble arch, for example, paint your area eggshell white. After it dries, sponge paint blue-gray or cream to add texture.
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Outline lightly the details inside the arch's structure with pencil. For instance, account in your painting for any shading, distortion, decorative elements or light-created color changes.
Always reference the photograph for lighting and architectural details.
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Paint each detail, using a color as close to the color in your photograph as possible. Continue to compare your photograph to the painting to correct anything that prevents hyperrealism.
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Paint the area inside and around the arch, using the same method as for the arch.
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Tips & Warnings
When creating a trompe-l'oeil arch, use different photographs to inspire the surroundings or for inside the arch.
References
- Photo Credit Arch image by Semfamily from Fotolia.com arch image by Natalia Pavlova from Fotolia.com
