I offer one-to-one oil painting tuition tailored to your goals and experience level. Whether you’re a complete beginner or looking to refine your skills, lessons are designed around you and your goals and interests. You’re welcome to bring your own ideas, photos, or props to work from, or use what I have in the studio.
Feel free to explore my website, which has lots of information on oil painting as well as some info on soft pastel and oil pastel.
If you’d like to book tuition or if you have any questions about what it will entail, the best way to reach me is via email or on WhatsApp (details at the bottom of the page).
Please note that I no longer offer group tuition, but you are welcome to book a duo lesson. More information on tuition is available on the Tuition page.
I'm an artist and teacher based in Glasgow, Scotland. I have an MA in Art History (St Andrews), an MFA in painting (New York Academy of Art), and a Postgraduate Diploma in Art, Law and Business (Christie’s Education, London). I also studied at Charles H. Cecil Studios in Florence, Italy.
I have exhibited and sold my own work in the UK and the US.
I am also a visiting tutor at the Barbican Art Society in London, where I teach workshops in the summer. Examples of past workshops are 'Turner and Whistler', 'Modern London', and 'Telling a Story: introducing narrative to your art'.
Outside of painting, I am an equity analyst with a strong interest in sustainable investing.
I use project-based learning, rather than rote learning using casts in the dry academic tradition. Learning technique is important, but I don't believe that you should be limited to what's in front of you when you make art, and I think that learning to trust your own imagination and draw from life experience is as much a part of improving your work as learning how to convincingly paint a nose or an eye.
My students range in age from under ten to over ninety! Whether you are a a complete beginner, a weekend hobbyist or an aspiring professional, I will do my best to work with you towards your goals.
When I teach I dip into a range of techniques that were developed over centuries, from the 'glazes' of paint that make Renaissance portraits so luminous, to the impasto techniques that give impressionist paintings their vivacity. It depends on what you are painting and what you wish to achieve.
I take a pragmatic approach to the use of technology. Working from life is great, but its often unrealistic, particularly for portraits. There are iPads in the studio onto which you can upload photos to use for reference.
My sweet cat, Prince, might be mooching about in the studio while we work. I make a point of highlighting his presence in case you have an allergy or an aversion. He'll appreciate a little extra love and fussing as we just lost his life companion, Elton, very suddenly, and we both miss him terribly!
I no longer offer gift cards as my website hosting platform is unable to redeem them at checkout (which makes the booking process excessively complicated).
If you have received a gift card please contact me and I will take down your gift card details and complete your booking myself.
If you have any questions about the studio please send me a message via the link below.
2/1 5 Baliol Street, Glasgow, G3 6UT, United Kingdom