Introduction to Oil Painting

with Nataliya Zozulya

The perfect opportunity to get started in oil painting. This course introduces a systematic approach, with exercises to build confidence and unleash the imagination. You will learn techniques relevant to all styles of painting and begin to develop your own style.

Booking page

Course Dates Spring Term 2026

12:45-3:15pm each Monday

2, 9 February

(Half term 16 February)

23 February

2, 9, 16, 23, 30 March

Topics include:

  • The equipment: what is and is not necessary. Art shops and sweet shops: knowing the difference

  • Mark making – the basic skill of using the brush correctly. The DNA of your finished painting

  • Tonal control. The critical aspect of your painting before you even get to colour

  • The important attributes of colour. Temperature, saturation, transparency, etc.

  • Palette management. A whole world in a limited space

  • Preparing a canvas.

  • Painting strategies: completing paintings both in stages and alla prima (“all at once”)

  • Making studies from a variety of reference materials including photographs, prepared images and still life.

Basic materials for the Introduction to Oil Painting Course with Nataliya Zozulya 

Oil:

Sufficient amount of Titanium White (200ml tube), Raw Umber, Burnt Umber, Yellow or Gold Ochre, Red Ochre Transparent, Raw Sienna, Burnt Sienna, Oxide of Chromium Green, Viridian, Ultramarine Blue, Prussian Blue or Phthalo Blue, Cadmiums: Red and Yellow, Alizarin Crimson.

(Winsor&Newton Artist’s range is good. Their student version is suitable however they have less colour pigment in them)

 

Surfaces:

Several artist’s boards, canvas boards or canvases (white gesso primed)

18x14inches

16x12 inches

14x10inches

 

Brushes:

Range of good quality hog long filberts and flats from number 4 to 12

 

Solvents:

Low Odour for the lessons, turpentine or white spirit if you prefer at home. Please do not bring turps or white spirit to the classroom.

Two jam jars with lids for washing your brushes during work

Linseed oil

 

Palettes:

Rectangular or oval medium wooden or firm plastic palette (white plastic is good). No tear-off palettes, please.

size appr 37x23cm (see links below)

 

Palette knife:

eg Winsor&Newton palette knife N21 or N22

 

Plenty of rags or kitchen towel, old shirt  or apron to protect clothing (or wear old clothes)

 

Drawing paper pad A3 size (for notes and some sketching), 2B pencils, eraser.

Option for plein air: Portable easel or Pochade Box with tripod sold separately (You can carry paints in pochade box and some of them include a palette. Some boxes can be quite expensive, but if you are planning to stick with your painting and try to paint both indoors and en plein air, they are useful).

 

You might find these links useful:

http://www.cassart.co.uk

https://www.jacksonsart.com

https://www.pullingers.com

“I’ve recently began Nataliya’s oil painting course and  I’m so glad I’ve started back from the very beginning. Nataliya’s  method is just what I’ve needed as she explains everything very clearly. I’m now starting to understand colour mixing for the first time! Also knowing how to begin a still life is greatly appreciated.”

- Collen Hillman, February 2025

Introduction to Oil Painting: Course Programme

1. Basic Materials and Colour Theory

 Oil paints: introduction and how to make your own oil paint

 Supports and grounds (canvas and wood panels); why sealing the support is necessary

 Brushes: variations, sizes, fibres, and cost considerations

 How to make your own palette

 Thinners and mediums

 Creating the colour wheel: primary, secondary, and tertiary colours

 Tree colours and their possibilities

Materials: Two canvas panels, 30 × 40 cm

2. Brushstrokes and Basic Oil Painting Techniques

 Learning different brushstrokes and simple oil painting techniques (with the help of visual materials)

 Choosing pigments to create a spring colour palette

 Understanding hue, value, and saturation

 Painting simple shaped objects

Materials: Two canvas panels, 30 × 40 cm

3. Form, Light, and Drawing Basics

 Basic shapes in everyday life: sphere, cube, pyramid, cone

 Light and its colour

 Using tone and light to create the illusion of 3D form

 Drawing and painting a mug

 Still life with a dark background

 The circle in perspective

Materials: One canvas panel, 25 × 30 cm

4. Grisaille Still Life – First Session

 Simple still life using the grisaille technique with five tones

 Composition and proportions

 Tonal sketches and the use of a tone scale to understand the tonal structure of a painting

 The “fat over lean” rule in layered oil painting

 Basic principles of perspective

Materials: One canvas panel or canvas, 30 × 40 cm

5. Grisaille Still Life – Second Session

 How light models form

 Understanding the importance of hard and soft edges

 Working on details

 Introduction to glazing techniques

6. Still Life in Colour – First Session

 Using a viewfinder to support composition

 The importance of a strong drawing

 Simplifying tonal masses

 Preparatory sketches in tone and colour

 Blocking in main shapes with washes

 Colour underpainting

Materials: One canvas panel or canvas, 30 × 40 cm

7. Still Life in Colour – Second Session

 Maintaining unity in the painting and avoiding overworking one area

 The colour of light and its influence on hue and form

 How light models rounded objects

 Studying brushstrokes used by different artists

8. Landscape Painting from Reference

 Landscape composition and choosing a focal point

 Balancing abstract masses

 Introduction to aerial perspective

Materials: One canvas panel or canvas, 30 × 40 cm

Booking page