Alla Prima

[Linda Brandon]

Originally Posted by Holly Snyder

I'm not sure what a noodge is, but please feel free anytime

You're correct to be skeptical about my use of "noodge", found in only two dictionary sources that I know of, one of which is the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Ed., 2000.

Slang: Variant of nudge. Noun. One who persistenty pesters, annoys or complains.

[Marcus Lim]

Originally Posted by Holly Snyder

...And also what Scott Burdick says here:
Try and plan out your brushstrokes like Scrooge himself; the fewer you can do it in, the more powerful your painting will look. If you're confused by this, think of painting a nose. You will want to paint the shadow underneath the nose in a large, simple brushstroke; then use a couple others to paint in the dark of the nostril. If, on the other hand, you paint the smaller shape of the nostril first, you'll have to use lots of little fussy brush strokes to fill in the shadow area around the dark. Once again, always do the larger shape first in as few strokes as possible, then the smaller ones!

Hi Holly,
I couldn't have said it better than Scott himself! In fact, what i'd like to add to this point, and re-iterate what i mentioned earlier, is that before we actually lay the details on the face, it's important to find what you want to focus and express on the face - the 'magic spot' i call it.

With that you can then allocate priorities throughout the face, with in your case, the feel of brushstrokes on the focus. The rest of the parts can then be brought over using a large brush - hake brush for the matter.

This whole philosophy, to end, is the essence of John H. Sanden's Premier Coup Technique. I hope what i shared with you helps in your future works.

[Marvin Mattelson]

Nicely done Holly. I don't like smooth panels for alla prima. Actually I don't like them for much of anything. I use Claessens SP#13 for my alla prima paintings. The paint bites beautifully. A smooth panel needs a base layer for the paint to grab onto. It's better suited for working with layers if you must use it as all.

My critique would be that the distance from the bottom of the nose to the chin looks too long. At least that's how it appears to me. On an alla prima painting the drawing really needs to be nailed before you lay on any thick paint. Great job.

[Julie Deane]

Originally Posted by Linda Brandon

You're correct to be skeptical about my use of "noodge", found in only two dictionary sources that I know of, one of which is the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Ed., 2000.

Slang: Variant of nudge. Noun. One who persistenty pesters, annoys or complains.

It's Yiddish - ah, the wonders of American English, where many languages are incorporated into general usage.

[Jimmie Arroyo]

Holly,

Very nice results! Is this something you just felt like doing, or is there an inspiration that comes from the reference that makes you feel to do it alla prima?

Many times, I'll look at a subject and immediately it'll come to me how it should be handled, what paper to use and such. Is that a decision you make while doing oils?

[Holly Snyder]

Linda,

If you're a noodge than I'm a well-sought after artist rolling in commissions. Oh wait, that latter part is going to happen NEXT year.

Thanks Marcus, I see what you mean now. I'll work on that for new paintings.

Thanks Marvin for the info. once again.

Jimmie,

No particular inspiration. I just looked through my photoshoot to find one that had good color definition, so that there wouldn't be any confusing areas that might make it hard to complete alla prima. My overall goal here is to speed up. Things rarely click from the beginning with me, although I certainly believe they do for you as your drawings have a certain in-your-face confidence, which in addition to your excellent drawing skills makes them so successful. Usually I'll find a face/pose I like, then go looking at other artist's books for references on composition, background, coloring, etc, (kind of backwards).

Holly