• Absolute Beginners
  • Painting

This course is intended for beginners in acrylic and water-based oil paints.

Painting is an historical medium for image making. It can feel intimidating because it has a long history and can be complex, but we can begin by playing. 

In this course, we will break down the painting process into stages that can be personalized and accomplished as students begin their  journey in paint. Students will use photographs and still life to develop observational techniques to create descriptive images for painting. We will go over simple basics of using colour, getting to know your paints as a material, basic paint handling: how to apply paint to a surface and we will use lights and darks to create form. Short demonstrations will be given to help construct paintings in stages and we will discuss painters working representationally (realistically/non-abstract) with slides and short discussions of class work. 

Note: It would be helpful if students have some experience with observational drawing, but it is not necesssary.


Spring 2021: 6 Weeks: Base Tution: $275

This course will be offered via ZOOM. Prior to the course session, you will receive an invitation for the session(s) via email. You'll need a laptop, desktop or tablet, internet connection with good bandwidth and headphones (either wired or wireless). We recommend that you set up a free ZOOM account and be familiar with ZOOM prior to the class beginning.  Here is a link to help you get started: https://support.zoom.us/hc/en-us/categories/20010169

Notes: Kyla Brown is a Toronto based artist, educator and writer. She works in a project driven practice that includes community based works, subtle public interventions, drawing-installation and video works. Exploring mapping as a material practice, Brown’s work focuses on navigating city space, particularly in Toronto and London, Ontario. She has shown at the Khyber Centre for the Arts and the Anna Leonowens Gallery in Halifax, Art Mur in Montreal, XEXE Gallery and Hang Man Gallery in Toronto, as well as DNA Artspace, ArtLab Gallery, and with McIntosh Gallery's community residency in London, ON. She earned her BFA from NSCAD University, and MFA from the University of Western Ontario.
* This course is not currently open for registration

What you will learn

  • Basic observational painting
  • Basic understanding of colour and value 
  • Constructing an image in paint
  • Basic paint handling