Master Class | Elements of Photo-realistic Portraiture with Nick Stathopoulos

Everything you learned at art school is wrong.

Although self-taught artist Nick Stathopoulos never went to art school, he’s been a professional artist for over forty years, and has been a finalist in the Archibald, Doug Moran Portrait Prize, and the BP Portrait Prize in London.

Over the years, he’s picked up some tricks and tips resulting in some idiosyncratic ways of creating art. Best known for his portraiture, Nick will take participants on a journey designed to corrupt previous methodologies, destroy some archaic and outdated notions, and introduce new and different ways of working with composition, materials, and rendering, in a masterclass designed to be entertaining as well as informative.

Join award-winning portrait artist Nick Stathopoulos for an immersive two-day masterclass exploring the intricacies of painting photo-realistic portraits. Designed for experienced painters seeking to refine their skills, this workshop focuses on mastering essential techniques and studying critical elements of portraiture. Through in-depth demonstrations, guided practice, and expert feedback, participants will gain insights into Nick’s meticulous process, including brushwork, colour mixing, and the application of fine details. Rather than completing a finished portrait, attendees will focus on creating detailed studies of facial features, hair, and skin textures, etc.

What to Expect:

• In-Depth Demonstrations: Nick will showcase his approach to photo-realistic portraiture, revealing how to achieve depth, precision, and a lifelike quality in your work.
• Hands-On Studies: Work on focused exercises designed to improve your skills in specific areas such as colour matching, blending techniques, and rendering realistic textures.
• Personalised Guidance: Receive tailored feedback from Nick to help you refine your techniques and elevate your artistic practice.
• Expert Insights: Learn the secrets behind Nick’s distinctive style, including his approach to capturing light, shadow, and the nuances of human expression.

What You Will Gain:

• A deeper understanding of advanced portraiture techniques.
• Enhanced skills in brushwork, colour application, and achieving fine detail.
• The ability to create lifelike textures such as hair, skin, and facial features.
• Knowledge and inspiration to incorporate into your future portrait projects.

Who is This For?
This workshop is suitable for people with prior drawing and painting experience, wishing to gain an insight into how this artist creates his hyper-realistic portraits. This masterclass is tailored for intermediate to advanced painters who:

• Have experience working with oil or acrylic paints.
• Are eager to learn techniques for photo-realistic portraiture.
• Wish to improve their ability to capture fine details and realistic textures.
• Enjoy focused studies and are open to working on specific elements rather than completing a full painting.

Materials Required

Participants are required to bring their own materials, including paints, brushes an surface

• An A3 surface. Either a primed canvas or wooden panel.
• Trace down, black or white. (Some will be available on the day.)
• A small kit of acrylic paints.
• A small basic kit of oil paints. Try and favour skin colours.
• Liquin regular, and fine detail Liquin. We won’t be using much and there will be some provided on the day if you don’t already have any.
• Coloured pencils: browns and skin tones if you have them. Again, there will be a range on the day if you don’t have any.
• Brushes: Bring a range, but specifically bring:
  • A large chisel brush for underpainting.
  • A series of round-head brushes for dry-brushing. Like Jasart 582 No. 11, 8, and down.
  • Small, and extra fine brushes. Like Jasart ROUND 0, 3/0 or Windsor and Newton Sceptre Gold II No. 0, 101, 202, but try and bring one long thin brush like a W & N Sceptre Gold II No. 303.

What will be provided

• A black and white and colour reference.
• Acrylic paint for underpainting.
• Liquin medium if you don’t already use it.

Please Note:
This is a skills-based workshop, not a project-based class. You will leave with studies and new techniques to apply to your own work, rather than a completed portrait.

Bring your lunch. Tea and coffee is provided.

Images are paintings by Nick Stathopoulos: Square: "Deng", Portrait of Deng Adut, Acrylic and oil on canvas. 137x137.5cm. Finalist Archibald Prize and Winner of the People's Choice Award 2016. 

Main image: Close up - "Pantone Black 7" in progress. This is the acrylic underpainting before all the super-fine details went in with oils. The blue tape is to protect the black hair. Portrait is of Julia Martinez Estrada. 2020. Acrylic and oil on linen. 71x61cm

About studio classes

Our class sizes are small, ensuring you receive the individual tuition you need. We have a maximum of 12 students per class.

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