Oil Painting Process Step by Step: From Idea to Final Glaze Explained

From blank canvas to finished oil painting, here's every single step, the way my classical art academy and Nicola Verlato taught me to do it. This is the full process behind my first original oil painting: from the initial idea and concept, through the photoshoot and preparatory drawing, the grisaille underpainting, color glazing, and the final touches. I'm documenting my journey from a 9-5 corporate career into classical figurative art and this video is the most complete breakdown I've done of how a painting actually comes together, start to finish, using techniques rooted in the Old Masters. If you're curious about painting in thin layers, how a grisaille works, or how oil glazing actually builds up color and form, this one's for you. IN THIS VIDEO How I came up with the concept and composition (inspired by Giorgione) Planning and directing a reference photoshoot Post-production and building an accurate reference image Gridding and transferring a preparatory charcoal drawing The grisaille: building volume in raw umber and lead white Color glazing: earth tones, optical greys, and warm/cool temperature shifts Final glazes with lakes (alizarin crimson, sap green, indian yellow) and the "black mix" accent trick Mistakes I made along the way — and what I'd do differently next time ⏱ CHAPTERS : 0:00 Intro: about this video 01:50 Coming up with the idea 04:10 Organizing the photoshoot 05:02 Post-production 05:20 Preparatory drawing (gridding + charcoal) 07:07 Transferring the drawing 08:29 Grisaille (underpainting) 12:01 Color glazing in thin layers 14:21 Final touches 15:35 Final thoughts If you want to see more of the thinking behind this painting, check out my earlier academy vlogs where I talk through it in progress:    • I Don't Know If I'm Going Back to ART SCHO...   Follow my journey : 💌 Instagram:   / katia_miro   💌 TikTok:   / katiamiro   📍Institution attended: Milano Painting Academy Materials & techniques mentioned: charcoal (fusain, conté pierre noir), grid transfer method, raw umber, titanium white, lead white, turpentine, burnt umber, burnt sienna, naples yellow, vermillion, ultramarine blue, alizarin crimson, sap green, indian yellow, oil glazing, grisaille technique, painting in thin layers. #oilpainting #grisaille #classicalart #figurativepainting #oldmasters #artacademy #paintingprocess #oilpaintingtechnique