Oil Painting Club

Calling all oil painters! Have you attended an oil painting class and feel inspired to keep practising what you’ve learnt? Would you like to spend a relaxing Sunday morning oil painting in a well-ventilated, inspiring studio space alongside like-minded lovely people? Then we look forward to seeing you at Oil Painting Club.

These untutored monthly sessions at the Draw studio will encourage you to develop your personal practise and keep your enthusiasm for oil painting going. Bring any oil paintings you’re currently working on, or start something new working from our pool of photo references. There will also be a Still Life set up each month to work from. ( Please note, we will not be working from a model).

What to expect

If you’ve attended an oil painting course before, this would be ideal for you – it will be an opportunity for you to practise what you've learnt and to start using oil paints on a regular basis. This is not a tutored session - more a relaxed, low pressure friendly group with Sara on-hand for guidance if you need some feedback or helpful pointers – and all genres of oil painting are welcome, from landscape, still life, portraits to abstract!

Places are limited to 12 attendees and pre-booking is essential. If you have any questions about Oil Painting Club please email [email protected] If you are a complete beginner to Oil Painting, we recommend you sign up to Introduction to Oil Painting to get you started!

Sara Reeve is a Brighton-based artist and tutor at Draw who specialises in portraiture in oils. A semi-finalist on Sky Arts Portrait Artist of the Year 2023, her work has been exhibited nationally, and was selected for the Ing Discerning Eye 2022.

What you need to bring

You will need to bring your oil painting kit - oil paints, solvent, palettes and palette knives, a surface (or existing painting you're working on), brushes suitable for oil painting, apron and kitchen roll. There will be limited supplies available to purchase at the studio if necessary.

Getting to the studio

You’re welcome to arrive from 9.45am. Approach New England House from the New England Street side of the building and walk up to the locked blue double doors next to the sign for the ‘Building Manager’s Office’. Wait to be let in or call the number on the door for entry - the studio is on level 5, Unit 1 South, just knock and walk in. There is parking at London Road car park, Elder Place & Trafalgar St car parks; Brighton station is a 5-minute walk from the studio.

Discounts

The discounted rate is available for anybody on low income, students or Patreon supporters. Sign up to the Draw Patreon from just £3.60 per month to get access to the discount, online life drawing course, live online classes and personal feedback from our tutors. Whether you are a Patreon supporter or not, you can post your drawings on the Draw community Facebook group HERE and you are welcome to tag us with @draw_brighton and #drawbrighton on Instagram.

Safety & accessibility

For the wellbeing of everybody at the class please don’t come to the class if you are ill with contagious symptoms. If you have any accessibility needs, please do let us know beforehand and we will do everything we can to make sure you can enjoy the life classes here. The building has a wheelchair ramp at the North side of the New England Street entrance and lifts up to level 5 with gender-neutral toilets & accessible toilets on floors 4 & 6 accessed by lift. Fixative spraying is not allowed in the studio and is done outside; oil paints will be used at this session and we will be using odourless solvent (no turps) throughout the course - our air purifier and good ventilation help control fumes.

We keep the studio a safe environment by providing:

• Monitored ventilation (aiming for <900ppm CO2)
• Air purification with HEPA filters
• Sick pay for our freelance life models
• If you have covid, flu or bad cold symptoms we ask you not to attend - you will receive a refund as well as our appreciation!

Host or Publisher Draw Brighton