Oil Painting for Beginners: Materials, Techniques, Exercises

If you want to start oil painting but don’t know how to handle the materials or control your brush, this course will guide you step by step.

Oil painting can feel overwhelming at first. Many beginners struggle with how to apply paint, how to create smooth transitions, or how to control the thickness and movement of the brush. Without a clear method, it is easy to feel lost or frustrated.

In this course, you will focus on the essential techniques needed to build a strong foundation in oil painting.

You will begin by learning the basic gestures: how to apply paint, how to control your brush, how to create smooth blends, and how to work with flat areas of color. These technical skills are fundamental and will directly impact the quality of your paintings.

You will also learn how to prepare and use a painting medium, and how to approach your work in a clean and controlled way.

Once these basics are understood, you will apply them through two practical exercises.

The first exercise focuses on working with a limited palette, using only two colors to better understand values and transitions. The second exercise, a fragmented amphora, will help you develop precision, control, and observation by working step by step on different areas of the painting.

The goal of this course is not to create a perfect painting, but to give you the technical tools and understanding needed to paint with more confidence and control.

By the end of this course, you will have a clear and structured approach to oil painting, and a solid base to continue progressing.