Alla prima painting or direct painting in oils is a sumptuous, energetic, and painterly style of art. Historically, it is associated with rebelling against the strictures placed on painters by academia. It is also the creative breakthrough that gave rise to Impressionism, which was itself associated with expressiveness and liberation.

For all these reasons and more, alla prima painting is an attractive style of painting that captivates artists and patrons alike. At the same time, however, it can be somewhat challenging to create art in this style. To help you meet this challenge in this class, I will…

Present how to plan an alla prima painting
Suggest how to simplify your painting and workflow
Show two approaches on how to begin your painting
Demonstrate some fundamentals and nuances of brushwork
Complete a painting from start to finish

To better appreciate alla prima painting, we will also take a brief journey into art history. We’ll investigate how alla prima evolved out of classical academic painting while paying particular attention to a few pioneers who led the way and what we can learn from them.

Cru Du

Real and unique Cru Du

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