Will Kemp Art School https://willkempartschool.com/ painting tutorials, courses, tips & techniques Mon, 28 Sep 2026 12:36:50 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://willkempartschool.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/cropped-willkempartschoolfavicon-1-32x32.png Will Kemp Art School https://willkempartschool.com/ 32 32 How to Paint a Whistler Nocturne in Oils https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-paint-a-whistler-nocturne-in-oils/ https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-paint-a-whistler-nocturne-in-oils/#comments Sun, 27 Sep 2026 12:18:15 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=53648 James McNeil Whistler, Nocturne Blue and Silver – Chelsea, 1871, Oil paint on wood After visiting the Whistler exhibition at Tate Britan, the Nocturne series really captivated my attention, and I thought it would be an interesting subject for looking at compressed tonal ranges. This painting demo is based on Whistler’s Nocturne Blue and Silver […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-paint-a-whistler-nocturne-in-oils/feed/ 15 7 Reasons Why Beginners Fail at Drawing https://willkempartschool.com/7-reasons-why-beginners-fail-at-drawing/ https://willkempartschool.com/7-reasons-why-beginners-fail-at-drawing/#comments Thu, 10 Sep 2026 09:02:56 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=53469 If you’ve been learning to draw and feel like you’re not getting anywhere, it’s very easy to assume you simply don’t have the talent for it. But in my experience, talent is rarely what holds you back. More often, it comes down to how you’re practising, what you’re expecting from yourself, and whether you’re giving your […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/7-reasons-why-beginners-fail-at-drawing/feed/ 8 The Materials List Is the End of the Story – To Process Behind a Painting Palette https://willkempartschool.com/the-materials-list-is-the-end-of-the-story-why-i-prefer-to-discover-a-colour-palette-as-the-painting-develops/ https://willkempartschool.com/the-materials-list-is-the-end-of-the-story-why-i-prefer-to-discover-a-colour-palette-as-the-painting-develops/#comments Fri, 21 Aug 2026 07:38:55 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=53290 In many of my paintings, I’ll often start with just a couple of colours and perhaps one brush. Yet if you look at the materials list I ended up using, you’ll see a much larger range. And that process of how I got there can be slightly misleading. It can look as though I sat […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/the-materials-list-is-the-end-of-the-story-why-i-prefer-to-discover-a-colour-palette-as-the-painting-develops/feed/ 35 James McNeill Whistler at Tate Britain – Exhibition Review https://willkempartschool.com/james-mcneill-whistler-at-tate-britain-exhibition-review/ https://willkempartschool.com/james-mcneill-whistler-at-tate-britain-exhibition-review/#comments Wed, 05 Aug 2026 10:38:20 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=53088 ‘To say to the painter, that Nature is to be taken as she is, is to say to the player, that he may sit on the piano.” James McNeill Whistler James McNeill Whistler (1834- 1903) was a remarkably modern painter for his time. His paintings are carefully designed, tonal and strikingly contemporary. Opinionated, rebellious and a natural showman, Whistler […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/james-mcneill-whistler-at-tate-britain-exhibition-review/feed/ 61 NEW! Vincent’s Sunflower’s Acrylic Painting Course https://willkempartschool.com/new-vincents-sunflowers-acrylic-painting-course/ https://willkempartschool.com/new-vincents-sunflowers-acrylic-painting-course/#respond Fri, 10 Jul 2026 12:21:51 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=52545 Morning class, I’d like to introduce you to a new Acrylics Course. Welcome to Vincent’s Sunflowers in Acrylics. Over 4+ hours of tuition This is a simple, easy-to-follow downloadable video course with over 4 hours of tuition. It’s a one-time payment with lifetime access to the lessons. The course is a self-study video course for […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/new-vincents-sunflowers-acrylic-painting-course/feed/ 0 How to Overcome the Ugly Stage in Your Paintings https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-overcome-the-ugly-stage-in-your-paintings/ https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-overcome-the-ugly-stage-in-your-paintings/#comments Mon, 15 Jun 2026 11:56:05 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=52376 The underpainting is fresh, just tone and shadow. A faint suggestion of something emerging. And in that moment, before any colour hits the canvas, the painting is perfect. Not because it’s complete but because it’s got potential. Nothing has gone wrong. There are no mistakes to fix. The best work you’ve ever made might be […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-overcome-the-ugly-stage-in-your-paintings/feed/ 31 How to Use Schmincke ‘Medium-W’ as an Oil Painter https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-use-schmincke-medium-w-as-an-oil-painter/ https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-use-schmincke-medium-w-as-an-oil-painter/#comments Sun, 31 May 2026 21:47:40 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=52258 The Oil Painting Medium Nobody Fully Explains If you’ve been searching for less toxic mediums to use with traditional oil paints, you may have come across a mysterious product by Schmincke, ‘Medium-W’. It sounds more like a character from a Bond film than an artist’s medium, but it’s actually quite an ingenious solution for turning […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/how-to-use-schmincke-medium-w-as-an-oil-painter/feed/ 25 An Easier Way to Start Drawing Every Day https://willkempartschool.com/a-simpler-way-to-start-drawing-every-day/ https://willkempartschool.com/a-simpler-way-to-start-drawing-every-day/#comments Sun, 31 May 2026 13:29:40 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=52241 The moment you tell yourself, “I need to draw more,” the process can suddenly feel pressured, important, loaded with expectations… and strangely less enjoyable. Drawing becomes “Art.” The sketchbook becomes a test. Every blank page starts quietly asking: “Is this good enough?” And often, that pressure arrives before the pencil has even touched the paper. […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/a-simpler-way-to-start-drawing-every-day/feed/ 4 On the Wisdom of Colour Schemes https://willkempartschool.com/on-the-wisdom-of-colour-schemes/ https://willkempartschool.com/on-the-wisdom-of-colour-schemes/#comments Mon, 25 May 2026 12:29:21 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=52189 A student emailed me last week (hey, Vicki!) with a problem I think most painters face. She was stuck in that difficult space between wanting to paint and overthinking every decision about what to actually paint. That uncertainty can easily stop your enthusiasm to get back to the easel. To break the cycle, she decided […]

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]]> https://willkempartschool.com/on-the-wisdom-of-colour-schemes/feed/ 27 The Simple Secret to Rapid Progress in Your Paintings https://willkempartschool.com/the-surprisingly-simple-secret-to-rapid-progress-in-your-paintings/ https://willkempartschool.com/the-surprisingly-simple-secret-to-rapid-progress-in-your-paintings/#comments Tue, 28 Apr 2026 11:53:32 +0000 https://willkempartschool.com/?p=52094 One of the fastest ways to improve as an artist is to get into the habit of checking your own work as you make it. That might sound obvious, but it is one of the biggest differences between a beginner and a more experienced painter. A beginner often keeps painting, hoping the piece will somehow […]

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