Atmospheric landscape painting in oils – inspired by Turner at Petworth House

This course is run across two spectacular sites: West Dean College and Petworth House. The course will focus on drawing and oil painting techniques.

On the first full day you’ll be able to take inspiration from the permanent collection at Petworth. You’ll then explore the grounds where your tutor will guide you through creating sketches in preparation for painting, the fundamentals of composition, how to balance light and dark in a landscape and build perspective and proportion to make strong foundations for oil paintings.

On the second day, you’ll return to Petworth to develop your ideas. Your tutor will introduce the day with a lesson of oil painting techniques and ideas to help translate your sketches into paintings. You’ll be guided through painting application, colour mixing and how to use mediums to create atmosphere in your landscapes. You can elect to work outside, painting ‘en plein air’ or in the studio at Petworth, working at your own pace with your tutor on hand to give you helpful tips and pointers along the way.

On the final day, you’ll work at West Dean to build your oil painting into final works. You’ll be guided through second pass techniques layering your works into strong pieces of art. You’ll have the opportunity to discuss any issues you may face and tips on how to correct problem areas. The day will conclude with a quick plenary and Q&A session to summarise everything you have learnt.