Masterclass | Oil Painting towards HSC Visual Arts with Jackson Davies

This course is designed for senior high school students who are interested in learning how to paint with oils.

Students will be introduced to the basics of colour matching, tonality, paint application, composition and professional practices. We will also cover materials and tools that are essential to oil painting such as brush types, pigments, and drying oils.

Jackson will discuss traditional painting methods and artists from the past whose work continues to inspire painters today. Throughout the course, students will be able to paint a variety of subjects from master studies to still lifes or work on their own project. Ultimately this course is about giving you the skills to paint in oils and to develop your self-expression in painting. 

What to expect

Weeks 1 - 2

We will focus on developing skills in tonality and paint application by painting simple subjects. Topics include:
* How to start a painting
* How to compose a painting 
* Understanding light and dark or “value” 
* How to represent light in paint
* How to create depth and realism 
* Oil painting materials; brushes, which colours to use, solvent safety, professional practices, palette mixing, cleaning etc.

Weeks 3 - 5

We will study a master painting to explore different painting techniques and approaches. Topics include:
* Exploring one master painting as a class and discussing how it was created 
* Glazing, scumbling, layering approaches 
* Colour mixing
* Flesh tones

Weeks 6 – 8

The final project will be self-chosen and may include portraits, landscapes, or abstraction. This is an opportunity to use the skills learnt so far.  Students are encouraged to go at their own pace, and therefore the structure of the course is flexible and designed to address the motivations of each individual. 

What will students achieve?

By the end of this course, students will:

• The skill to paint an oil painting from start to finish 
• Knowledge of oil painting materials; oil, pigment, brushes etc. 
• Development of fine art skills; composition, design, colour, art history, self-expression. 

Materials

Materials are excluded in the course fee. Please bring the following to class:

Support

• Canvas or canvas paper/board 

Mediums

• Linseed oil or alkyd mediums: Galkyd, Liquin etc. 
• Stand Oil 
• Odourless Artists’ turpentine/white spirits 

Colours

• Titanium White
• Zinc White
• Raw Umber 
• Burnt Umber 
• Black (ivory/lamp/vine)
• Yellow ochre
• Ultramarine 
• Cadmium Red 
• Cadmium Yellow 
• Alizarin Red 

*Cadmium can be substituted for spectrum or equivalent. Don't worry if you don't have everything, bring anything that you already have.

Brushes

• Any that you already own
•  Round sizes preferably 
• 2,4,6,8,12 (bristle or synthetic) 
• At least one small fine-tipped brush, sizes 0 or 00

Other

• Jars with lids Palette Rags

About our studio classes

Our class sizes are small, ensuring all students receive the individual tuition they need. We have a maximum of 12 students per class. For kids and teen classes, art materials are included in the fee.

To learn about our studios, kitchen facilities and how to get there, click here.

Use Vouchers and Save

Art Est accepts the NSW Creative Kids Voucher, Parents NSW Voucher, and Australian Partners of Defence member discounts. You must use your voucher or membership at the time of booking. To book with a Service NSW voucher, you will need to book over the phone or with our voucher booking form. Please note: we cannot accept the Service NSW vouchers via our online checkout. 

To find out what vouchers or discounts you can use on your class and how to book with these, visit our special offers page:

Special Offers  

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