In the first of her new three-part series on painting seasonal flowers in oils,Helen Tarr gets to grips with the alla prima oil painting method
During the first lockdown of 2020 I developed a serious and lasting obsession with floral still-life painting. It sprang from a daily online drawing project I ran to keep my students busy, but also reflected my renewed interest in our garden and the open landscape around our rural home. Still-life painting, and floral subjects in particular, became a central theme in my work and I found the alla prima (Italian for ‘at first attempt’) technique perfect for creating the fresh and expressive paintings I aspire to.
One of the challenges of alla prima painting in oils is that it involves wet-onto-wet painting, so the risk of the colours blending and becoming muddy is high, but the better prepared you are at the outset the less likely this is to happen. Having a clear plan of what you want to achieve will help, as will sketching out your composition carefully to avoid having to make major changes once the painting is underway. Using imaginative and varied brushwork for textures and details without resorting to fussiness will help too. If you also practise accurate colour mixing and matching you will find you can apply the paint freely and keep your work fresh and lively.
The beauty of still-life painting is that you can take your time and really concentrate on the process. In this article I will demonstrate the benefits of mixing your main colours and tones before you start and how this enables you to paint with confidence and flare. The common thread running through these articles will be the simple beauty of the humble dandelion. Its golden blooms are as glorious as any sunflower and make an excellent subject for a vibrant and expressive painting.
DEMONSTRATIONA Cornish Jug of Golden Dandelions
MATERIALS Oil paints
● Jackson’s Artist oil colour: titanium white. Jackson’s Professional oil colour: bright yellow lake; cobalt blue. Michael Harding oils: unbleached titanium white; ultramarine blue; burnt umber; burnt sienna. Winsor & Newton Artists’ oils: cadmium free yellow; quinacridone magenta.
Mediums
● Winsor & Newton Sansodor low odour thinners. Michael Harding PM1 oil paint medium.
Brushes
● Rosemary & Co: No 4 Ivory long filbert; No 4 and No 6 Ivory long flats.
Jackson’s: No 2 Akoya (long filbert shape); No 2 Akoya rigger; No 3 Akoya round pointed.
Pro Arte: No 4 and No 6
