Portrait Painting From A Photo: Underpainting

Have you felt drawn to oil painting but are unsure how to begin?  In this 45-minute class, New York based artist and teacher Kristy Gordon will take you through the stages to developing a portrait painting in oils using photographic reference. You will learn how to select a good photo to work from, how to tone your canvas before you begin and how to use oil paints so that they're fun and easy. Kristy will walk you through measuring techniques that will ensure that you get accurate proportions and a good structure to your portrait.  Then she will demonstrate step-by-step how to develop a monochromatic underpainting using Burnt Umber oil paint. With this foundation, you will be ready to move to color in the next class, where Kristy will show you exactly how she mixes the flesh tones that she's mixing! 

After you've completed your underpainting move on to the color class here.

Check out my other classes:

Portrait Painting from a Photo: Underpainting (part 1)

Portrait Painting from a Photo: Color (part 2)

Portrait Painting with a Full Palette

Glazing and other Paint Application Techniques

Composition in Art

How to Paint a Baby in Oils

Painting the Portrait in Profile

How to Paint the Flesh Tones

Contemporary Portrait Painting

Painting the Eye

Drawing Facial Expressions: Determined Eyes

• Introduction
• Photo Guidelines
• Toning The Canvas
• Materials
• Comparative Measuring
• Blocking In The Proportions
• Blocking In The Proportions 2
• Refining The Underpainting
• Conclusion