How Did I Do My First Oil Painting: From Canvas to Creation

Join Elizabeth Xiaoyue Lang on her first oil painting journey, a portrait inspired by her studies at the Hong Kong Art School and guidance from her great-uncle Thomas. Follow each step of her process, from sketching and underpainting to colour mixing and detail work, and discover what she learned along the way.

From Canvas to Creation

My first oil painting was a portrait of a little boy, and I got inspired after starting my classes at the Hong Kong Art School. I was very keen to learn the techniques, I also received a ton of advice from my great-uncle Thomas, who’s an amazing artist!

I started with sketching basic shapes to get the rough proportions, then used yellow ochre and a lot of oil to create the underpaint. I mixed in a lot of skin tones (even more so during the painting process) and started with the face and skin, then the fabric, then the background, and then the hair. My skill on fabric and hair definitely needs improvement, but that's for another time.

The Best Part

To me, the best part was painting the face, that's why I started with it. Painting the textures, bumps, and asymmetrical features and understanding undertones is what i love about painting faces, unlike legs or arms. The most challenging parts were the fabric and the hair. I'm used to drawing faces and have a fairly good understanding of them and so it comes easier ro me. However I still have much ro learn.

Behind The Scenes Video

I made a video to show the behind the scenes work for this painting. You can see the process, and everything in between! I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I enjoyed creating the painting.