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6/30/2021 11:24:47 AM

Oil Study in Stages

Bradford Ross / 4 Comments

Alla Prima Oil Sketch Man Pulling
Alla Prima Oil Sketch Man Pulling

 

About a week before doing the sketch I primed a piece of watercolor paper with two coats of acrylic gesso.  When that was thoroughly dry I wiped on an imprimatura of oil paint and some medium and let that dry also. 

The drawing stage was done using black, transparent red iron oxide thinned with a little medium.  

 

 

After the drawing stage/block-in established a strong shadow side/light side map I mixed a flesh tone with combinations of transparent red oxide, naples yellow, yellow ochre, cadmium red light, cadmium orange,  cadmium yellow and a "cerulean" blue that I mixed from pthalo blue, ultramarine blue and white.

 

 

Adding in a few highlights helps to gauge some of the half-tones, which are added also.  I painted a opaque paint into the shadows of the face, chest and arm. Edge transitions were started at this point as well.

 

 

I refined half-tone transitions in the face and left arm and left everything else alone, more or less.  The last thing I did was add some cool reflected light in the shadows.

 

 

 

Palette, from left to right:  ivory black, ultramarine blue, mixed "cerulean" blue, transparent red iron oxide, cadmium red light, cadmium orange, raw sienna, yellow ochre, cadmium yellow, naples yellow, titanium/flake white.

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4 Responses to Oil Study in Stages

Brad, Was the watercolor paper cold or hot press, and what size was the paper it's hard to tell from the photo?

Martha, the paper is Strathmore 500 cold press, 140 lb., and it measures 11"x15"

Thanks,this is great article.

I was searching something entirely different when my cell froze. I turned it off and restarted it and lo and behold, your art and video appeared stressing “how we learn to really see”.

I wept in gratitude that my Muse had “led” me to your beautiful inspirational work. Blessings in your becoming.


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