Modern Portrait Painting - Mansfield Woodhouse Library - Adult Learning

Discover the exciting world of expressive portraiture in this inspiring acrylic painting course. Designed for adult learners of all abilities, the course explores how colour, texture, brushwork, and composition can be used to capture not only a likeness but also the personality, mood, and character of a subject.

Emphasis will be placed on experimentation, creative risk-taking, and developing a personal artistic style. You will explore expressive mark-making, bold colour palettes, and layered paint applications to create dynamic and engaging portrait paintings.

Through a series of practical demonstrations, guided exercises, and individual projects, learners will develop an understanding of facial structure, proportion, colour mixing, and acrylic painting techniques. You will explore expressive mark-making, vibrant colour, and layered paint applications to create dynamic and engaging portrait paintings.

By the end of the course, you will have completed one or more expressive acrylic portraits and gained greater confidence in their creative decision-making and painting practice.

By the end of the course, learners will be able to:

• Research contemporary portrait artists

• Demonstrate an understanding of facial proportions and structure when planning and composing an expressive portrait.

• Apply a range of acrylic painting techniques, including layering, blending, glazing, and expressive mark-making.

• Mix and use colour creatively to convey personality within a portrait painting.

• Refine an expressive portrait through observation and experimentation

• Develop social skills to help you with voluntary work / community projects

What you need to bring to the course:

Acrylic or watercolour paper A3 pad, white acrylic gesso, 40x 50cm or A4 stretched canvas, acrylic paint (Lemon Yellow, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine Blue, Cobalt Blue, Magenta, Cadmium Red, Titanium White), synthetic brushes

Funding and Fees

If you receive certain benefits, you may be able to take the course for free.
If money is stopping you from enrolling, please visit our funding page to see what help is available.

Living in England

To book and join one of our courses, you must live in England permanently and either:

• Live inside the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) area (Nottinghamshire or Derbyshire)

or

• Live outside the devolved areas listed below

You cannot enrol if you live in these devolved areas:

• Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)

• Liverpool City Region Combined Authority

• North East Combined Authority

• South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority

• Tees Valley Combined Authority

• West Midlands Combined Authority

• West of England Combined Authority

• West Yorkshire Combined Authority

• Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority

• York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority

• Hull and East Yorkshire

• Greater Lincolnshire

• Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority

• Cornwall Council

• Lancashire Combined County Authority

• Buckinghamshire Council

Residency Requirements (Additional Information)

If you live in the UK on a visa, we’ll need evidence of your visa to confirm funding. You can upload this when applying, and you’ll need to complete a short questionnaire.

Some exceptions include:

• Your visa must last until after your course ends.

• Asylum seekers must have lived in the UK for at least 6 months while their claim is being processed.

• You are supported by your local authority under Section 23C or 23CA of the Children Act 1989, or under the Care Act 2014.

Anyone who does not meet the funding criteria would need to pay full course fees.