Term: Area by Area

An approach to painting where the artist creates a detailed sketch to locate the main points and landmarks, then immediately paints a small area to a finished state. The overall picture is completed as the artist moves from one area to the next, finishing each section before moving on. This is also referred to as windowshading.

This approach is in stark contrast to the more traditional approach of underpainting the entire picture loosely before any details are added. The key to painting area by area is ensuring the drawing is right, and then rendering each area with careful attention to its relationship to other areas.