Vianna,
I have a DVD by John Howard Sanden where he recreates the painting "Lady Agnew" by John Singer Sargent. It is painted alla prima and is amazing to watch. If you are looking for simple paint strokes and simple mixes this might be a good place to start.
He also has a premixed set of portrait colors which are essentially three lighter values of a basic flesh (mixed with yellow ochre, cad red, white and cer blue) and several other neutrals and grays(values 3, 5 and 7). I have been making the transition from watercolor to oils for my portraiture so this has helped to simplify things for me while I am learning. I originally tried to premix a larger palette of colors (a method recommended here on the forum) but was overwhelmed with the time spent premixing and trying to figure it all out since I was not able to attend a workshop to learn this correctly.
I know what you mean about fussing and the level of frustration that it can cause. I dream of being able to put brush strokes down the way I see Sanden do in his videos.
Like you, I am also interested in anyone else's suggestions or methods. There is so much to learn and it is wonderful to have such a pool of talent on this forum to draw from.
Cynthia
|