Exploring Oil Painting for the Serious Beginner

Exploring Oil Painting for the Serious Beginner free download

A Simple and Thorough Introduction to Painting with Oils

In this course, we will work from start to finish to create a beautiful, realistic oil painting of an egg on bright red cloth. We will begin by prepping our work area, talking about materials and how to use them, discussing a positive mindset and drawing our image in pencil.

Next, we will mix all our colors for accuracy to match our photographic image and discuss having a good quantity to last between painting sessions, which may be up to a week or more apart. Then we will put our first layers of oil paint on, starting with the background, then moving onto the egg. We will apply the paint on the background in a rudimentary way, then go back and refine and blend the colors. We will do the same with the egg.

From here, we will break for several days to a week or more...as long as it takes for our first layer to completely dry. Then we will apply our second layer for increased opacity and richness of color, as well as a new opportunity to blend and adjust colors, textures and edges as we see fit. Finally, we will make finishing touches, sign our paintings and enjoy the feeling of having new knowledge and experience with this incredibly versatile medium.

Specific skills you will gain in this class are how to:

• mix colors to match the colors in a realistic reference

• mix enough paint so that you're less likely to run out

• manage your palette space for cleanliness and control to limit frustration

• create an effective underpainting

• layer over your underpainting for richness, opacity and texture

• apply paint for different textures

• layer oil for richness and texture

• create different shadows and highlights

• identify different shadows and highlights as they fall on a three-dimensional object

Thank you so much for joining me on this journey. Enjoy!