Can You Teach Yourself to DRAW and PAINT like the Old Masters without going to an Art Academy?

I was self tought since i was little i used to watch a lot of cartoons and anime, Bob ross etc i always get my little note books and start to doodle and i used to envy a lot towards the pro artists which motivated me towards improving my craft even if i diagnosed with a condition even if i can't walk normally anymore it hasn't stop me in doing what i love🤓🤗

I never see anything as hard, instead taking it easy, I know there will be journey and will took time, but that how I approach anything I want to learn, because if you think something hard, sometime the thing will feel harder, also it will intimidate people that want to learn, so when people ask me if something "A" or "B" is hard? I just answer it really easy and proceed to give some simple example that easy to kickstarter that someone journey, but also give them general direction, step by step from easy to more advance stuff so they don't loose track and jump around thing that important.

Considering that’s literally what humans did for centuries yes lol

What book was that? He called it bark plakes?

well its not like the old masters went to art school so ofc

Terrific advise thank you

At the age of the Internet, our world is changing at light speed pace. Mastering these skills takes time, but who has so time to invest 5, 6 or 7 years of her life today, except if one has already retired ? The main advantage of being self taught is that you can take shortcuts. Sure, you do not reach the same level as someone who has learned in an atelier. Nor do you have the same polyvalence in your skills. But you enjoy more with the process, you go at your pace and, above all, you start creating, which is much much more fun.

Can you go to the bathroom when you wake up? YES

Yes

Art is not a right or wrong thing... it’s the expression of emotions and being able to put your heart on a page, so you can do it anyway you want, someone in the world will like your work at some point and maybe a million will, you just have to start.

"it is now being revived by private studios, mostly American" 🤨 no one tell this guy how the Atelier approach is still well and alive in every Eastern European art school

Observation of light is enough, you can learn the brush techniques by practicing.

Yes, that first step! I am trying to establish self-discipline and a daily determined work ethic. I need to get over this hump of feeling intimidated. There is a lot of work ahead. As you suggested, Florent, perhaps a diary would help me. Thank you so much for providing inspiration and concise guidance.

As someone else whose become a self taught artist, it becomes important to understand that this is much like working out. There are no shortcuts if you want your end result to come out the right way. It is a slow and gradual burn often over many years of practice and “learning” much like working out. You can’t just pump your arms every day and expect your legs to come out cut like diamonds. Same is true for artist, you can’t draw faces and eyes all day and then expect your feet and hand drawings to look just as good. This later escalates to drawing/painting clouds and skies. I’m an ocean away from becoming anything close to a master. But I’ll keep paddling along in my little boat until my arms stop working.

Due to health reasons it is impossible for me at the moment to study at an fine art academy. I am very sorry about that and i try to learn on my own. Of course there are a lot of Videos and tutorials. And they help sometimes. But there is no structure and most of the time no Feedback. In addition i learn best when someone is showing me in person how i can do this and that. And this motivates me then as well. I bought the tutorial of Florent. It is very good since there is a structure. Nevertheless i need more input in specific topics. The only structured tutorial i found in addition is the Old master academy online. But i am not totally convinced if i should buy it. Has someone experience or recommendations in addition? 🙏

I hate the stereotype artsy guy

Of course you can . In 80-th I had studied a lot to enter a colledge of Art but failed . Then a little bit later I went to an Art Academy wherestudied only for a year , and after to a theological colledge on the art faculty. But the problem is that either you are drawing as a Leonardo or Botichelly you would never sell anything for a good price without a diploma, patant or serteficate . The Art buisness I think is more cruel then any . Because in reality almost everyone can draw

thanks a lot for your sharing

this guy looks like linus tech tips if he was an artist and french

Thank you for sharing...

What advice can you give to someone who is brand new to painting when it comes to going through canvases and panels? I really don't want to keep everything. Some are terrible. Can I reuse them? I tried that canvas paper pads and they are terrible. They buckle like crazy.

Magnifique ! Avoir eu ces étapes il y a 2 ans j'aurais sauvé du temps. Merci

I paint in acrylics and I was wondering how to switch to oils. I want to go to school for the fine arts before I go through with it though.

" it is more brilliant to break a rule you have mastered"

Merci pour ces précieux conseils

Thank you so much for putting this video together with all that great info on making a course progression to follow. It's exactly what I've been looking for. I do have some questions for you. When you studied and had your atelier schooling, how long did you spend copying a single Bargue plate? Was it for the duration of one class, or maybe for 1 hour? It would be great if you were able to provide some approximation to help me plan out my "classes" in more depth. Did you only do 1 copy per plate per class?

Impossible for self taught artist? Your just speaking from a place of ego. I havent been painting long at all, and my painting in realism is already more skilfull than the vast majority of professional artists who attended schools.

Re-watch the first 30 seconds of your video. Perfect example of how to turn people off even attempting to try to create art. When you check your stats for this video, you will see why so many people stopped watching so quickly. You should strive to encourage and inspire, not immediately tell someone the hobby/craft/pastime they are considering is "demanding and difficult" - your words. Talk instead about the joy in self discovery, regardless of how 'good' they become. More Bob Ross, less art snob. This is the first of your videos that I came across and will not watch any others - probably my loss, but that's how you made me feel.

Why can't the goal ever be to reach the same level? Does it mean we can never reach the level of a good artist that actually studied art academically?

Thank you!💪

Ever seen an original Vermeer? He copied himself a million times, painted over and still many mistakes in his paintings

I'm self taught and have been doing art for about 3 years (digitally), my current body of work is about 230 drawings and paintings. I'm still tracing large parts of figures to get them right... My productivity atm is probably tragically insufficient if I want to reach any level within a reasonable amount of time.
I don't have a single fiber of talent in my body so I'll have to compensate with hard work. Why does it have to be so difficult, so balls to the wall? I just cannot get myself to draw enough. Motivation is never enough, never enough discipline.

go to museums. at least here in Europe, theyre free or cheap/affordable. spend hours there. You'll learn.. a lot. but first, learn to maipulate geometric shapes in perspective, and the core principles of light and shadow (think of shadows as shapes! in particular, the "line" that divides light from shadow is where the most dramatic texture happens, and the halftones).

Van Gogh didn't have a natural talent for drawing or painting like a Rubens, Rembrandt or Vermeer. However, having failed as a preacher and in a succession of unsuitable jobs supported by his brother Theo he turned to art in his late twenties. He had no formal training apart from a few lessons from a distant relative when younger. His early attempts were unsatisfactory, but being the person he was he persevered with extraordinary determination. Using, for example, the course set out in books by established French artist Charles Bargue he assiduously worked his way through the atelier method. It involved repeatedly copying plaster casts in the classical tradition, learning composition, portraiture and painting following the method taught in art schools in France. It was the method rejected by the Impressionists who employed a much less formal approach placing much more emphasis on light and colour.

However, Van Gogh as always ploughed his own furrow. Eventually he became a very accomplished draughtsman and when he started to paint he then truly discovered his unique expressive voice. But, if you wanted to follow Van Gogh's example you would also need his extraordinary determination. He was a man after all who translated the bible into three different languages while living in poverty and surviving on financial support from his brother. You could certainly learn to draw mechanically using such a proscribed method, but would probably find it easier if you had no natural talent to hold you back as it were. But, ultimately use whatever it takes to get you to where you want to go.

It's also a good plan to visit art museums to get a close look at actual paintings. Take a sketchbook and make quick or detailed sketches of the things that catch your eye.

There are modern masters like renato mucillo (landscape painter) who never attended an atelier, so when you say that its "impossible" without attending an atelier your are lying and talking from a place of ego because you attended the florence academy. And quite frankly from one artist to another i am %100 convinced my skills are surpassed your own and i never took an atalier. Stop talking garbage my friend. Its about the invividual not the school

You can call this method a WORKSHOP method, if you use proper English. Anglophones from North America don’t understand the Aterlier concept, through obvious lack of cultural exposure. “Workshop” is a better word.

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

Muchas gracias Florent. Tengo 65 años. Tengo 7 años de haber empezado mi aprendizaje autodidacta. He ido desordenadamente, experimentando con acrílico (por lo económico), un poco de óleo(retratos, uff no ha Sido satisfactorio), después intenté acuarela, y últimamente pastel y charcoal.
He realizado cuadros grandes (80 x 100 Cms) de inicio, sobre todo paisajes y animales.
Con tu vídeo, veo que lo hice totalmente al contrario.
Pero creo que en esta prueba y error he ido aprendiendo. La perseverancia es vital en el aprendizaje. Gracias y seguiré tus consejos.

Which is the book that you are mentioning?

Great video! Thank you for this kind of content.
Do you know any ateliers in Paris?
I also wonder...what about landscapes? And architecture? Are these aspects part of this kind of teaching?

Sobering...

Jokes on you for thinking my brain would ever let me think im good at something
If i was going to listen to my brain to say im a master at something i would still be drawing squares waiting to be promoted to drawing cubes

Don't have time to watch the whole video but from a self taught artist this is my advice- if you want paint like your fav 19th century painter = jeff watts atelier. If you want to paint accurately then the best option is the barque cast drawings( you can find the book for free on internet archives) and the ONLY book you need for everything to make sense is James gurnys book. That's it, don't waste time looking for things better, I've tried.

God im so grateful for this, i am self taught artist and started out as digital been doing art for only roughly 4 years and a half i developed my goal and taste of what i want in my art and what my preferences of art is, i wanted to be able to do mastery like the old artists but its so hard and demotivating because there isnt a lot of classes that can provide u with the old teachings and back then i didnt know the vocabulary of this certain type of art i really only called it “old art” or something, yeah im just rambling now but im just happy that there are people who are self taught and also want to learn how to do classical art without a former art education
I wish where i lived people offered that type of education but also where i lived peoples sense of art is very modern and i dont have my own money to buy online classes and even if i did the exchange rate for us dollars to my currency would be crazy

I just dont know how to word my frustration im really sad that this type of art form is lowkey kinda dead of course the death of it open to a new era of creative artwork but i just wish people would bring this back

Hey i seen artist his name prem awle. He never went collage but his work very nice like master

Getting good at it is hard. Just learning to draw/paint isn't until you start wanting it to look like the masters' artworks.

Thanks sir! 🙏🏼

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