Fundamentals of Portrait Painting

A comprehensive video course focused on the fundamentals of portrait painting

This is the demonstration and the lecture Arthur gave during his Portrait Painting Bootcamp 2024.

Arthur is sharing his renowned technique of creating a portrait in oil using direct method of painting, starting wet-on-wet in the first session and continue refining and adjusting on the next day.

Duration: 6 hours | Skill level: Any | Access: Lifetime

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You will learn:

How to block in the head wet-on-wet

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2

How to see the planes of the head and how to analyze the light

Exercise for rendering the form and practice soft gradation

3

Couching and oiling out / Rendering after alla prima layer is dry

4

How to render the features efficiently

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6

Tonal approach to rendering a luminous skin

Course Contents

Part I

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Materials List

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Reference image and preparations

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Intro | Block In (18:13)

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Homework

FINISHING TOUCHES (24:38)

REFINING THE FORM (21:56)

Skin Tones (23:32)

Adding Darks | Color Notes (24:12)

Sphere Exercise (16:41)

Form and Highlights (11:49)

Planes of the Head pt II (18:28)

Planes of the Head pt I (23:18)

Part II

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Intro | Couch (13:28)

Adjusting the Drawing (19:20)

MODELING (27:56)

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Homework

Adding Lights | Conclusion (21:23)

FOREHEAD AND THE HAIR (19:38)

REFINING THE EYES (25:30)

Eyes & Nose pt II (22:13)

Eyes & Nose pt I (24:39)

Refining the Structure (22:01)

What Students Are Saying:

  • “First class.....excellent course... I learnt so much and Arthur was attentive to my progress, patient and super helpful with any issues I was having. I really appreciated the recordings and how information was easily accessible with it being divided into smaller lesson titles. ”

    Pavllou Kokko

  • “This was a very helpful bootcamp both in helping me ground my fundamentals, as a largely self-taught artist, but also to see how Arthur pushes away from the reference/model to make decisions as an artist.”

    Martin

  • “I loved the way Arthur explained so many techniques in detail and shared so many insights... All over my learning curve was very steep and I understood a lot more than what I ever did with just watching YouTube videos or studying books. There is not much to improve - it was really the best art instruction course I ever did”

    Sigi Dannheimer

  • "This was such a wonderful learning experience; I’m saddened that it is over but excited to put all this new knowledge to work! Many thanks for being an exceptional instructor and thanks again to Kelsey, an amazing assistant."

    Lori Barrison

  • "Extremely helpful and thoroughly enjoyed it. The mixing of skin colors was the most beneficial and what colors can do on the canvas next to each other also."

    Patrick Stacy

  • "It was exactly what I needed as I had been away from painting portraits for a couple of years and although had been attempting on my own some self-doubt. This challenge gave me the tools to feel confident and new approaches to make it more interesting."

    Santiago Perez

  • "Completely satisfied. This was my favorite course to date. The instruction was extremely clear and the step by step approach enabled me to build solid foundations and retain important information. I am quite slow and am still working my way through the course but knowing that I can work at my own pace has made the journey a rewarding experience."

    Roda Fisher

Start Learning Now

Lifetime Access

$120

6+ Hours of content

Fully narrated real time demo, Reference images and assignments.

Access to Alla Prima Academy community

Full Access + Private Critique

$250

45 minutes Private Zoom Critique session with Arthur Gain

6+ Hours of content (More updates are coming free of charge)

Fully narrated real time demo, Reference images and assignments.

30-day money-back guarantee

About Arthur Gain

Arthur Gain, based in Barcelona, Spain, is a self-taught oil painter with a diverse artistic journey. His works have been showcased in esteemed venues worldwide, including the MEAM in Spain, the Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum in the US, and the Museo La Contea Del Caravaggio in Italy.

Arthur is a winner and finalist of numerous international competitions, including the prestigious BoldBrush Award, finalist multiple times in competitions such as BoldBrush, ModPortrait, and ARC Salon.

Nowadays, Arthur focuses on personal projects and commissions for private and corporate clients. Additionally he continues to share his expertise with a broader audience both offline and online, including professional artists seeking to enhance their skills in oil painting and alla prima technique, as well as students at the Barcelona Academy of Art.

Website: arthurgain.com