'Picasso In The Progress...'

We thought it would be interesting for aspiring artists to follow David Henty's journey to recreating the iconic painting of a 'Weeping Woman' by Pablo Picasso.

This painting theme was revisited numerous times that year [1937] by Picasso.

Firstly, David studied the painting as he had to understand what Picasso was trying to convey.

David then started to sketch, with loosely painted oils, covering the entire canvas with his sketch by positioning line for line near perfect. Going over it again and again.

He then moves on to correct and refine the painting and double checking continuously from different angles, including in the mirror for a reverse view.

After the previous stage David then starts to look at the texture and thickness of the paint and proceeds to replicate. David does this by visiting the actual painting in person at the gallery it is exhibited in. He then starts by mixing up the paint and applying it on thickly.

He loads up the brush and applies the paint in a thick consistency following Picasso's directional brush strokes, recreating the exact texture applied.

The fourth stage of David's steps to recreating an iconic painting like this, is most importantly the colour! He ensures the colour values are perfectly correct! David spends copious hours building up the colour, ensuring the drying process is complete and then building up again before moving on to the last stage.

David looks at the colours and by using his own secret techniques he matches to the original.

Finally, David leaves the painting to dry thoroughly. This can be anything from days to weeks. After David is satisfied the painting is free from moisture, he will begin the 'ageing process' to give it the correct patina, how he does this remains his secret!

To learn these secret techniques we encourage you to keep an eye out for David's upcoming book 'For Fake's Sake'; a book co-written with fellow notorious art forger Billy 'The Brush' Mumford.

In the course of painting the Weeping Woman David realised what a genius Picasso was and how he understood and manipulated the basics of drawing and painting. Picasso having mastered the basics!