You may wonder where he begins with his paintings, Nathan loves to utilize an initial warm layer. Most times a stained base which offers a transparent tonal value. This initial layer is called imprimatura, this term comes from Italy and translates to "first paint layer".
Nathan explains that the imprimatura layer is literally the road map to the painting. It allows him to establish light and dark areas, it gives depth and warmth to the painting.
This layer makes for an ideal underpainting, he'll rub off the areas he wants highlighted, establishing the initial depth and overall gauge for his tonal range. You'll notice in all his paintings he likes to allow some of this layer to continue to come through in the final painting.
The underpainting layer has been around since the Middle Ages, being utilized by artists since then. However, it has become standard practice since the Renaissance period, specifically you can see this in art from Italy.
The imprimatura layer is usually made with an earth toned pigment, such as burnt sienna, and often times diluted with turpentine or mineral spirits. Due to this layers ability to establish value in relation to lights and darks on the painting, the layers that follow are applied with different levels of transparency.
You'll notice examples of this layer being implemented in the pictures and video attached to this blog. Check out how it already starts to bring the paintings to life.
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