Take Your Painting to the Next Level

Ready to take your painting to the next level?
This class is ideal for artists who already have some experience painting in Oil, Acrylic, Gouache, or Pastel and are ready to grow their skills further. If you’ve been wanting to turn a photo into a painting or have started a piece but feel unsure about how to move forward, this is the perfect opportunity to get expert guidance and renewed inspiration.
Each student brings in either a reference photo or an unfinished painting to work on during class. From there, artist and instructor Michael Latala provides hands-on, individualized instruction to help you make confident artistic decisions. First, he’ll show you how to evaluate your photo reference—guiding you in choosing what elements to include and what to leave out. Then, through clear demonstrations, he’ll help you resolve common issues like washed-out highlights or areas that have gone too dark to read.
Throughout the class, Michael gives each student personal attention. If you’d prefer to keep your canvas untouched, he’s happy to demonstrate his suggestions digitally using Procreate on his iPad Pro. This digital approach allows you to visualize changes before applying them, which can be especially helpful when exploring different color choices or compositional edits.
Importantly, this class is all about progress at your own pace. There’s no pressure to finish quickly. Instead, you’re encouraged to slow down, focus on what you’re learning, and enjoy the process. With consistent support and practice, you’ll discover how to turn your ideas into beautiful, well-executed paintings—just the way you imagined them.
This series runs on the second and fourth Tuesday of the month:

June 11 & 25
July 9 & 23
August 13 & 27