Acrylic and Oil Portrait Chiaroscuro

with Fiona Fung

Using light and shadows to make portraits come alive

Chiaroscuro is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. This will be a demo workshop in using light and dark contrasts on portraits to make them pop out of the canvas and give life to your pictures. You will also learn some tips in acrylic and oil painting and have the opportunity to ask questions. Due to the short time of the workshop it may be difficult to have a go yourself, but if you do wish to try to follow along and practice during the workshop, see the requirements to prepare for this. It will not matter the style of your artwork nor how accomplished at drawing you are, whether a cartoon stick character, a Picasso or a classic oil master, the basics of chiaroscuro are the same! 
Fiona is a visual artist who uses many techniques; oils, acrylic, acrylic inks, watercolour, henna and more to express the beauty and emotions she sees in nature and people. She has lived and worked in a number of African and European countries and loves the richness of peoples and cultures, especially expressed through the arts. She is one of the organisers of the Global Creative Studio Day, facilitates the online French Creative Studio, and is in cross-cultural mission with Arts Release.

To see some of her work in general check out her Instagram: fionafungart
Acrylic and Oil Portrait Chiaroscuro

Session time(s)

(45 minutes)

Special Requirements

If you wish to practice during this workshop you will need

  • Small canvas (preferably pre-tinted) or paper that can support acrylic paint. 
  • Or a paper  (preferably tinted) suitable for drawing or charcoal sketching if you prefer not to use paints, along with the materials needed for this eg pencils, charcoal, pens etc.
  • Pre-drawn portrait outline to save time, or model /photo.
  • Acrylic paints & brushes.
  • Optional: Oil paints & linseed or poppyseed oil