Learning to Paint with Oils at Great Ayton

Last night at Great Ayton Art Club it was lovely to welcome so many new faces, and for several people it was their first introduction to oil painting.

Oil paint is an absolutely fabulous material to work with, but it does come with a few things to understand, particularly because it is oil based and needs to be used and cleaned differently to water based paints. Once you understand those basics, though, it is such a versatile and enjoyable material.

Like all of my workshops, I gave everyone a few principles to work within. These give the session structure and guidance, but there is always space to experiment, be curious and simply have a go. Often the most interesting work comes when you can see that someone has stopped worrying about getting it exactly right and has just gone for it.

I don't expect everyone to copy my example exactly. If we all tried to produce an identical painting, it would become stressful and wouldn't necessarily give anyone the skills to go away and paint something different. Instead, I respond to each person's painting individually, helping them understand what is working and what they might try next.

Last night we began by mapping out the composition of our flowers, thinking carefully about scale, angles and the shapes of the flower heads and petals. As we started painting, we asked some simple questions. Is this a light, mid or dark pink? Is the colour vibrant or more muted? Does one tone gradually fade into another, or is there a definite edge?

We also began thinking about the direction of our brushstrokes and how they can help describe the shape and form of a petal.

Next week we'll continue developing the paintings, turning our attention to the leaves, exploring brush direction further and adding definition to any areas that need it.

For a first experience of oils, everyone did brilliantly, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how the paintings develop.