Alla prima, an oil painting process that you can learn.

This oil painting process is one most of us have seen on TV and learned within most art schools today. The "alla prima" method, or "at first attempt", is a direct method of painting that is completed mostly in one sitting. In older days, quite a bit of planning went into it, but now a days, its more of a direct approach without oil painting involved.
This oil painting process can be used for the still life, the floral, the portrait and the landscape. One of the thing that I've found here on the web are a number of blogs and forums that promote challenges. In some of these challenges are a "painting a day", a painting in an hour, or a painting in twenty minutes (popularized by some of Bob Ross's teaching and other one stroke painting mentors) It's a great way to improve your technique and understanding of paint manipulation on the canvas, color mixing and draftsmanship.

The intense concentration required to skillfully pull a completed work off in one sitting just makes my head hurt, but there are those out there that THRIVE under the pressure and its a joy to watch them perform their craft.

The alla primer oil painting process takes spontaneity, and skill and great emotion. The great Impressionists of the late 1800's brought this technique of painting to the worlds attention. And it has never slowed down since!