I’m pleased to announce the release of the final section of Master the Art of Oil Painting: Learn 7 Essential Protocols for Success. If you do all the exercises and apply what you’ve learned, you will learn to oil paint, completely and competently.
Laura and I budgeted a year to finish Master the Art of Oil Painting: Learn 7 Essential Protocols for Success. We ran over by eighteen months, because building an online painting class was far more exacting than either of us expected. We were both still busy running classes and workshops and, of course, painting. But we’re finally done, and if you’ve ever wanted to learn to oil paint, now is the time to do it.
Making online painting classes sounds easy, until you get started. Then there are all kinds of questions that should never occupy the mind of painters. Luckily, my daughter Laura, who works with me, has a programming degree.
If there’s anything I know, it’s how to teach painting. But I also had to learn how to make videos, including lighting, timing, and talking directly to the camera.
You will learn everything you need to know to be a master oil painter
I initially learned to paint from my dad, who learned to paint in the middle of the 20th century, when art classes were far more technical than they are today. That was a huge help when it came time for me to take formal classes. I found there was a lot that was glossed over, especially about the nuts-and-bolts business of applying paint to canvas.
Master the Art of Oil Painting: Learn 7 Essential Protocols for Success starts with what you should buy—and why—so you have the best pigments and don’t waste money on non-essentials. We then spend considerable time on preparation, including drawing, composition, and the underpainting. From there I take you through the layers of alla prima painting. We finish with instructions on varnishing and framing your finished work.
If you pay attention and apply the lessons as you go, you will have a firm foundation on which to build your painting practice.
Why learn to oil paint? I just want to express myself!
You don’t have to learn technique to paint, but it sure helps. That’s true even when your goal is emotional rather than technical. Technique gives you the tools to express yourself clearly and powerfully. When you learn to oil paint, you save lots of wasted time, effort and materials.
To paint light, form, depth, perspective and anatomy convincingly, you need to understand how paint behaves and how to control it. Without technique, even strong ideas can come out muddled or confusing.
Technique gives you three basic confidence-builders:
- Control – so your brush does what your brain intends.
- Efficiency – that means less guesswork and flailing around.
- Freedom – paradoxically, once you master technique, you’re free to break rules.
Technique is just the grammar of art. Want to learn to oil paint like Vincent van Gogh, Henri Matisse, Willem de Kooning, Nathan Oliveira or any other major ‘rule breaker’? They all looked raw to their contemporaries, but each had solid training underneath their experimentation. Technique makes the difference between a lucky accident and a deliberate, effective stroke.
How to buy Master the Art of Oil Painting: Learn 7 Essential Protocols for Success
You can buy the entire set of lessons here, or buy the lessons individually (on the same page). Note that buying the whole package at one time gives you a $35 discount.
If you’re ready to start painting, I’ve just released Seven Protocols for Successful Oil Painters. You’ll learn seven essential protocols that every successful oil painter needs to follow. Each course focuses on one protocol, and you can take them in any order that suits you.
Reserve your spot ASAP for a workshop in 2025:
- Sea and Sky at Acadia National Park, August 3-8, 2025.
- Find Your Authentic Voice in Plein Air, Berkshires, MA, August 11-15, 2025.
- Immersive In-Person Fall Workshop, Rockport, ME, October 6-10, 2025.