This week’s assignments pushed me in unexpected ways. I worked through still life studies in charcoal, a limited-palette à la prima approach, and a reference still life from a photo. Several elements made this more challenging than I expected:
- Subject choice — I wanted fun, interesting objects, but also ones that felt masculine and personal.
- Composition & lighting — getting angles, overlaps, and height relationships right was harder than I thought.
- Color mixing — I thought I knew color mixing — and then I didn’t. Big learning moment!
- Time limit — each painting was limited to 2 hours, which forces better decision-making and prevents overworking areas.
Charcoal Still life
I went bold with a Geeki Tiki Chewbacca mug as the centerpiece. Honestly, this was too much to handle in the time limit. I found myself rushing and struggling to push values boldly enough for impact. What made this more challenging is I injured my back earlier in the day, which made sitting through this assignment much harder.
3 color Limited palette à la Prima still life
This was my first time tackling an oil still life alla prima — and using only three colors (warm & cool), black, and white made it even tougher. The subtractive method I learned previously feels worlds apart from this direct painting approach.
*Note: “à la prima” (Italian for “at first attempt”) means painting wet-into-wet in one session — no layering over days. It’s all about observation and confident brushwork.
Five-Color À La Prima Still Life
This second attempt felt much more confident. I chose a chunkier, more complex arrangement with flowing fabric, which added drama — but also complexity! Still, I’m happier with the results, even if the composition got busier than necessary.
Charcoal still life from photo
These photoreferenced studies are all about proportion and strong value relationships. Pineapples look deceptively simple — until you try to draw one! Value confidence is key here.
Final full color à la Prima still life
Coming from a comic art background, I chose inking tools as my subject. It felt like a quiet tribute to where I started.
This painting taught me more about color relationships than anything else this week. I am still learning how to mix with intention rather than guessing and correcting. That is the next growth edge.
What This Week Taught Me
Painting alla prima forces clarity.
- You must see value relationships quickly
- You must commit to marks
- You cannot overwork endlessly
- You must simplify
The two hour limit exposed hesitation. It also built confidence.
I am still developing my eye for color and my ability to simplify complex objects. But I can feel the shift happening. I trust what I see more than I did last week.
That feels like real progress.
