I'm excited to share with you my first week at the Milan Art Institute Mastery Program.
As an artist, I have always been interested in improving my skills and learning new techniques to enhance my artwork. When I found out about the Milan Art Institute Mastery Program, I was eager to join and learn more about how to paint with oils.
![drawing of a hand in proportion how to draw milan art institute mastery program](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0687/7321/6568/files/Hand_240x240.jpg?v=1677482673)
During the first week, I focused on drawing with charcoal and pencil, which helped me understand the basics of proportion, measurement, and scale. The first two assignments were to draw my hand holding a paintbrush and a shoe in proportion, which was a great way to get started.
However, the most intimidating part of the week was the oil painting assignment. I had to use a subtractive glaze method, which involved laying down a dark colour and then pulling it back off the canvas to create the highlights and mid-tones. I normally don't freehand draw and usually I use a projector to ensure accuracy, so painting directly onto the canvas was quite challenging for me.
Despite the initial fear, I managed to complete the painting. The first stage looked great, then when I added the transparent glazes it made the painting really come to life.
I loved the way the cooler colours in the background appeared to recede against the foreground's warmer colours.
However, adding highlights with opaque bright oil paints was a bit of a challenge, as I couldn't get the vibrant pop of colour that I wanted. The blue always looked a bit greyish, which was frustrating. But overall, I was pleased with how the painting turned out.
![Oil Painting of a colorful parrot week 1 milan art mastery program](https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0687/7321/6568/files/Parrot_600x600.jpg?v=1677482618)
Hot TipEllie, our instructor, also taught us about how to set up our palettes, which helped us mix colours more effectively while staying in our right brain. I wrote out where all the colours go on a piece of paper, the opaques, transparents, warm, and cool, and I put that underneath my glass pallet so I don’t have to think about it too much and if I forget then it’s all written there! |
In conclusion, my first week at the Milan Art Institute Mastery Program was challenging, but I learned a lot. I'm excited about what next week will bring and look forward to improving my skills even more.