Observational Painting in Acrylics
Gain confidence in your painting using acrylics, learn how to quickly respond to any subject and discover the joy of 'plein air' painting.
Learn to produce fresh impactful work in Acrylics through quick decision making
This course shows how to leverage the advantages of acrylic painting and will benefit artists interested in building confidence in observational painting especially in a plein air setting. This no-nonsense course covers hard won practical advice and tips on materials, colour mixing and setup, as well as in depth painting demos, both in the studio and ‘en plein air’. The course is delivered through the perspective of the personal painting journey of Steve Browning, who has achieved considerable acclaim as a plein air painter.
Materials and colour mixing
Picking a subject and framing the composition
Blocking in and adding life with figures and details
See below outline of course
Credits
Overview of course structure
Introduction to myself!
My plein air paintings
Materials I use
Materials list
Outdoor easel options
Blocking in the composition
Completing the still life study
Stages of still life demo
Send me your work
Blocking in the composition
Adding figures pt. 1
Adding figures pt. 2
Simplify, add and subtract details
Send me your work!
My plein air setup
Seascape block in demo
Stages of the block in
Send me your work
Seascape block in demo
Painting the harbour
Composition tips
Adding figures and final touches
Speed paint
Send me your work
Book a call with me!
Book a call with me - set session goals
Confirmation page
We answer some common questions about this course and who it is designed for
This course is part of the Big Look member subscription. For just €59 per month you will have access to the full library of Big Look content and have the ability to get personalised feedback from artists when you submit work. You can cancel or pause your subscription at any time. For more information about Big Look subscription check out our support centre content
This course is for anyone who is interested in developing confidence in their painting by embracing the advantages of acrylics. It will suit anyone who has existing experience in painting and want to transition from painting in oils to acrylics, or for anyone who is interested in taking the leap to paint outdoors ‘en plein air’.
While this course will benefit artists of all levels, some prior experience of painting and drawing from observation will be a distinct advantage, as the focus of the course is developing confidence and developing existing skills, leveraging the advantages that acrylics brings to this type of work.
There is no set schedule for this course. This is a self-paced course which allows you the flexibility to follow at your own speed and convenience.
There are a number of opportunities to upload your own work to get an assessment from Steve. All student uploads are confidential and will not be seen by other students.
As you will see in this course, Steve recommends painting directly from nature. That said, in one of the demos, Steve does paint from a photo reference. While the camera can get in the way of the subject by ‘freezing’ a single moment, with practice an artist can learn to filter out distracting details from a photo reference to achieve a good result. Indeed, Steve does often combine photo references taken on the scene with his phone camera to paint details like figures who are constantly moving.