BIG SUMMER SKIES oil painting workshop

BIG SUMMER SKIES

Paint a gloriously dramatic summer sky in bold, unapologetic colour

DATE: Sunday 6th September
TIME: 11am – 3pm
VENUE: Craigie Village Hall, KA1 5LY
MEDIUM: Watermixable Oils
COST: £75 – all materials included

This workshop is all about letting the sky do the heavy lifting.

We’re embracing the very last of the summer skies and going all-in on colour — blazing oranges, hot reds, juicy pinks and glowing yellows.

You’ll learn my distinctively simple butuber-effective way of painting a big, dramatic sky in oils — without tiny brushes, endless blending, overthinking or spending hours trying to make a cloud look like a cloud.

Big brushes. Juicy paint. Bold colour. Maximum drama.

We’ll be working on a30cm square canvas, with the sky taking centre stage.

I’ll demonstrate a really simple seascape underneath — and yes, there is a very high chance that a wee Ailsa Craig might accidentally appear in mine. I cannot be trusted.

If you’re newer to painting or nervous about oils, just follow my lead and create the simple seascape. If you’re a more seasoned painter, you can freestyle the bottom of your painting and add your own foreground, landscape or horizon.

The important bit is the sky.

We’ll be workingalla prima — painting wet-into-wet in one sitting — learning how to build glowing colour, soften and lose edges, create atmosphere and make a sky feel enormous without getting bogged down in detail.

No waiting for layers to dry.
No teeny brushes.
No painstaking cloud drawing.

Just paint.

Materials

Everything is supplied — including your30cm square canvas, watermixable oil paints and all the materials you’ll need on the day.

There is justone thing I’d like you to bring:

A 2-inch emulsion brush.

Yes. An actual decorating brush.

Trust me.

What to expect

You’ll discover how to build luminous colour, create soft atmospheric clouds, work confidently wet-into-wet and use bigger brushes without overworking everything.

Most importantly, you’ll learn a dramatic-sky technique that you can use again and again for sunsets, stormy skies, glowing evening light and big atmospheric landscapes.

It looks impressive. It really isn’t complicated.

Suitable for

Absolute beginners — genuinely.

You do not need to have used oils before. If you’ve never painted, feel nervous about oils or think dramatic skies look far too complicated, I’ll take you through the whole thing step by step.

It’s equally suitable for painters with experience who want to loosen up, refresh their approach or learn a simple, effective way to create dramatic skies without overworking them.

Beginner, dabbler or seasoned painter — you can have as much or as little hand-holding as you fancy.

On the day

We’ll paint from11am–3pm at Craigie Village Hall.

Pleasebring your own lunch. Refreshments will be available throughout the day.

Everything else is supplied — apart from that all-important2-inch emulsion brush.

Come and squeeze the last glorious blast of colour out of summer.

Full refund for cancellations up to 7 days before the workshop. After that, refunds will only be issued if your place can be filled.