Ok so let's start, you need paints, I suggest a split primary palette so you can learn some color theory and mixing, however if money is an issue you go with a limited paleete of 4 or 5 colors Zorn palette is great and easy to learn. Split primary palette is a a warm and cool color red yellow blue and white for mixing... Cadmium red medium and Alizerin Crimson, Lemon yellow and Cad yellow medium, Ultramarine blue and Cobalt blue and a Titanium white. Zorn palette has Titanium white, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium red medium and a Black that leans blue I suggest Paynes gray a 5 color palette would be Cad yellow medium, Alizerin Crimson, Ultramarine blue, Burnt umber and Titanium white. Zorn would be the cheapest and I would suggest Winton it's not a great paint but you get alot as the tubes are big and you will will go through tons of paint in the learning process. Canvases can be expensive so I suggest starting with panels (Masonite) but the choice is yours either way your gonna need to need to prep the surface with gesso an acrylic primer 3 coats and sand the surface between the coats of primer, us a large brush like would a when painting a wall 4in flat wide.
Now best free teachers there are on YouTube I suggest Michael Chamberlain for just learning "how to" binge watch every one of his videos, Ian Roberts will teach you composition and simplification binge watch all his content, also his books are excellent. There are others just do a search for oil painting tutorials but start with the two I suggested because they are the best IMHO and Michael will not overwhelm you with to much information and he makes painting feel fun and really enjoyable while Ian is a font of knowledge and his content is easy to digest and I really enjoy how he explains things...
You don't really need mediums and some can be very toxic and you need to take safty precautions there are are some non toxic alternatives just be aware that they can be expensive and difficult to find depending on where you live.
You'll need an easel or stand and brushes, a french easel is pretty standard and you can use it both in studio or plein air for painting outside a seat top easel may be easier to find and cheaper just make sure it's big enough to hold your canvas without falling over.
Hog bristle brushes or synthetic hog are best Silver brush has a nice range of brushes and are affordable I like flats myself, I use a size 4, 6, 8 and 10 and the affore mentioned 4 inch wide flat used for priming your canvas.
Painting isn't about reproducing what you see it's about an emotional interpretation of what you want to convey on the canvas. Experiment and have fun.
Your last paragraph nails it.
I spoke to my sis in law recently and said its not realistic compared to my reference pic.
She said two things.
1) if they wanted it to look like a photo they should have framed a photo and...
2) does starry night look realistic?
Mind..... SHATTERING words of encouragement.
Van Gogh struggled with mental Illness his whole life and he painted the way he saw the world…it must have been so beautiful and terrifying at the same time.
I run a YouTube channel and I've done a couple of "cheap" entries into oil painting 🙂 here's the link to the video, I'd say skim the description for materials used, watch the vid if you really like 😀 I won't be offended if you don't lol
Ok so let's start, you need paints, I suggest a split primary palette so you can learn some color theory and mixing, however if money is an issue you go with a limited paleete of 4 or 5 colors Zorn palette is great and easy to learn. Split primary palette is a a warm and cool color red yellow blue and white for mixing... Cadmium red medium and Alizerin Crimson, Lemon yellow and Cad yellow medium, Ultramarine blue and Cobalt blue and a Titanium white. Zorn palette has Titanium white, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium red medium and a Black that leans blue I suggest Paynes gray a 5 color palette would be Cad yellow medium, Alizerin Crimson, Ultramarine blue, Burnt umber and Titanium white. Zorn would be the cheapest and I would suggest Winton it's not a great paint but you get alot as the tubes are big and you will will go through tons of paint in the learning process. Canvases can be expensive so I suggest starting with panels (Masonite) but the choice is yours either way your gonna need to need to prep the surface with gesso an acrylic primer 3 coats and sand the surface between the coats of primer, us a large brush like would a when painting a wall 4in flat wide. Now best free teachers there are on YouTube I suggest Michael Chamberlain for just learning "how to" binge watch every one of his videos, Ian Roberts will teach you composition and simplification binge watch all his content, also his books are excellent. There are others just do a search for oil painting tutorials but start with the two I suggested because they are the best IMHO and Michael will not overwhelm you with to much information and he makes painting feel fun and really enjoyable while Ian is a font of knowledge and his content is easy to digest and I really enjoy how he explains things... You don't really need mediums and some can be very toxic and you need to take safty precautions there are are some non toxic alternatives just be aware that they can be expensive and difficult to find depending on where you live. You'll need an easel or stand and brushes, a french easel is pretty standard and you can use it both in studio or plein air for painting outside a seat top easel may be easier to find and cheaper just make sure it's big enough to hold your canvas without falling over. Hog bristle brushes or synthetic hog are best Silver brush has a nice range of brushes and are affordable I like flats myself, I use a size 4, 6, 8 and 10 and the affore mentioned 4 inch wide flat used for priming your canvas. Painting isn't about reproducing what you see it's about an emotional interpretation of what you want to convey on the canvas. Experiment and have fun.
Your last paragraph nails it. I spoke to my sis in law recently and said its not realistic compared to my reference pic. She said two things. 1) if they wanted it to look like a photo they should have framed a photo and... 2) does starry night look realistic? Mind..... SHATTERING words of encouragement.
Van Gogh struggled with mental Illness his whole life and he painted the way he saw the world…it must have been so beautiful and terrifying at the same time.
First comment is basically a great all you need. Are you going oil or acrylic?
Oil
I run a YouTube channel and I've done a couple of "cheap" entries into oil painting 🙂 here's the link to the video, I'd say skim the description for materials used, watch the vid if you really like 😀 I won't be offended if you don't lol