underdrawings

Underdrawings are preparatory lines or traces drawn on a painting support before the application of the final paint layers. They serve as a guide for composition, placement, and proportions and may be drawn directly on the primed ground or transferred from a drawing or a full-scale cartoon.

Artists use various media for underdrawings, including charcoal, graphite, chalk, silverpoint, or incised lines in the ground. In panel painting, incising through the gesso or drawing on a white ground was common; in canvas works, a drawing on a primed surface or on a separate sheet could be transferred.

Pentimento: changes made by the artist during painting may appear as underdrawings or as later modifications as layers wear away; underdrawings may be altered or completely replaced.

Detection and significance: Modern imaging techniques, notably infrared reflectography and X-ray radiography, reveal hidden lines, traces, and corrections beneath the visible paint. Under-drawings provide insights into an artist's process, assist attribution and dating, and illuminate workshop practices and the development of compositions.