Pentimenti

Pentimenti - “A painter’s term for the evidence in a work that the original composition has been changed. Often the opaque pigment with which the artist covered a mistake or unwanted beginnings will, with time or injudicious cleaning, become transparent, and a revelation of original intentions will become visible through the finished composition.” Columbia Encyclopedia

RICHARD DIEBENKORN (1922-1993) Was a well known american artist who art included many areas of ‘pentimenti’ in his works.

Ocean Park No. 79 - 1975

A painting by Caravaggio called 'The Cardsharps contains pentimenti  but it is only seen by infra-red light, which suggestes that the position of the figure on the right has been changed.

The importance of penitmenti is considered in the case of an old master, if a painting is actually the first version of a subject or a second or third version. Many artists such as Caravaggio did not appear to do many drawings before beginning a painting and therefore worked out the composition straight on to the canvas.  Many pentimenti are found in the works of these particular artists.  The artists included Picasso, Mattise, Innes, Rembrandt and Titan, just to name a few.

Some paintings have been painted over the top of another painting of a different subject such as 'The Old Guitarist' by Picasso are not seen as pentimenti, but that is debatable I would suggest.  Who is to say that the face in the background of this painting is not the same person as painted in the final work?

 

Velazquez portrait of King Philip shows the very obvious changes, pentimenti, in his left leg, glove and his musket.  It is said that he looked after the decoration in the king's palace and would walk past his paintings and often make changes to them.