Intermediate to Advanced Portrait Painting in Oils

Intermediate to Advanced Portrait Painting in Oils

Class | Registration opens 2/20/2026 10:00 AM EST

87 Mountain Road West Hartford, CT 06107 United States
Upstairs
Intermediate - Advanced
4/6/2026-6/15/2026
1:00 PM-4:00 PM EST on Mon
$265.00
$245.00

Intermediate to Advanced Portrait Painting in Oils

Class | Registration opens 2/20/2026 10:00 AM EST

This class is designed to take your portrait painting to the next level. Students should have either
taken my beginner portrait class or have around a dozen portraits under their belts before taking this
class. We will not be going over basic skills such as how to mix color or get your preliminary
drawing on the canvas; students should know how to do this and have a preferred method of starting
a portrait at this point (gridding, proportional divider, freehand, etc.) as we will be focusing on the
finer points of creating three-dimensionality on the two-dimensional plane of our substrate.
We will be exploring turning the form with values and temperature, the importance of edge quality,
choosing the right background to complement the subject, and more. We will go over basic anatomy
of the head down to muscles and bones so you know what it is you are painting. As such, you will
need high quality photos of real people either printed or on a tablet (do not use your phone and do
not bring images of other paintings to copy). These photos must be of decently high resolution (no
blurry pictures or pictures where you can't make out some of the details). If it's a print, it must be on
photo paper and as true to life contrast and color as possible. Anything less will make the class
much more difficult--portraiture is difficult enough as it is.

  • No Class 5/25
  • Source:
    Please bring either a tablet with source images (and tablet mount if you have one) or several high
    quality prints where your subjects have good light and shadow dynamics. We will work on multiple
    paintings over the course of this class. Please don't use your phone to view your source as the
    screens are too small. If you need assistance picking subjects, I'll be happy to help before the
    session starts or even at the beginning of class.
    Substrate:
    Please bring several gesso or oil primed canvases or canvas panels (please have allowed oil ground
    to cure for at least a week prior to class if you are priming them yourself) that are anywhere
    between 11x14 and 16x20 in size should be enough. If you don't mind spending extra, linen is
    preferred. Also, Ampersand Gessobords are quite good for portraits. If you do use canvas, make
    sure the weave isn't too coarse as that will give you trouble down the line.
    Brushes:
    I use primarily Rosemary and Co. brushes but you can use whatever is comfortable for
    you. My preferred series from R&C are Bravura, Eclipse, Ivory, and Masters Choice. Generally,
    you'll want to have a collection of moderately stiff brushes and softer brushes in either
    flats or filberts, depending on which you usually prefer, in a variety of sizes from around
    2 up to about 8 or 10. A rigger or liner brush isn't necessary, but good to bring along if
    you have one. Here's a link to a list of my favorite brushes if you'd like to order any from
    R&C: https://www.rosemaryandco.com/wishlist/shared/index/code/Ks2z3r7761xsJL6j0EUVu3cYZlrzssvb
    /categoryId/all/?u=e32016

Mike Laiuppa

Mike is a Connecticut born and based artist who specializes in human and animal

portraiture as well as still life. While he has owned and operated NuMi Fitness, LLC since

2014, art has always been an integral part of his life. At an early age, Mike could be found

with a pencil and pad of paper in hand. In his teens, he played with oil paint, then moved

on to 2D and 3D digital art after college, dabbled in sculpting in his early forties, and finally

passed through acrylic paints only to settle back into oil painting once again. His work has

been juried into several exhibitions at The Lyme Art Association, Hudson Valley Art

Association, as well as sold at The Finer Line Gallery in Mystic, CT. Mike is also an active

member of the Portrait Society of America.