Photo: Joanna Kosinska
Always wanted to learn how to paint, but were afraid to enroll in a class? Free online painting tutorials may be right up your alley, helping you get comfortable with both basic and advanced techniques right from home. Whether you are interested in acrylic or oil painting or learning how to use watercolors, there is no shortage of excellent YouTube channels to help you get started.
Learning from an experienced artist is a great way to start your painting journey, and luckily there are plenty of creatives out there willing to help. From tips on the best brushes to how to work with solvents to showing how to move from sketchbook to painting, there are an endless amount of lessons to learn. And once you've learned these new skills, you can also watch video tutorials to give you new painting ideas for your next project.
Some of the YouTube channels we recently covered that help you learn to draw also have painting lessons, but here we've curated our list of specialized teachers to help you learn to paint. Some teachers prefer short lessons broken into a lengthy playlist, while others publish long-form tutorials and demonstrations. And the nice thing is, with so many teaching options available, you can browse around until you find that style that fits your needs. By spending some time with these videos, you'll come away with a solid foundation on how to paint.
What are you waiting for? With these free online painting tutorials at your fingertips, even if you're a beginner, there's no excuse not to start painting.
Acrylic Paint Tutorials
Once you find the best acrylic paints to get started, you'll want to figure out how to best tackle your new craft. There's a wide variety of acrylic painting tutorials, ranging from the basics of color mixing to tackling how to paint specific elements like an eye or a tree. Most channels have different levels of lessons for both beginner and advanced artists.
Will Kemp Art School
Acrylic Painting Techniques
The Art Sherpa
Painting with Jane
Createful Art
Suraj Fine Arts
Oil Paint Tutorials
Oil painting can seem daunting, but there's nothing more satisfying than understanding the technique of great masters like Rembrandt or van Gogh. With a little practice, you may even be able to paint your own Starry Night! These free online tutorials will take you through the necessary materials to safely get started with oil painting, as well as detailed lessons on anatomy, landscapes, or even palette knife painting.
Lena Danya
Daria Callie
Robin Clonts
Sergey Gusev
Michael James Smith
Watercolor Paint Tutorials
Some of our favorite watercolor artists, like Mateusz Urbanowicz and Kelogsloops, have YouTube channels where they share tips for how to achieve their signature styles. Or, if you are looking for a more in-depth course, there's no shortage of watercolor artists with a complete range of videos to help you master watercolor painting. Just stock up on a watercolor set, press play, and you are ready to go.
Kelogsloops
Mateusz Urbanowicz
Matthew White
Watercolor Misfit
The Mind of Watercolor
Mr. Otter Art Studio
Nitin Singh
Gouache Paint Tutorials
Many people have never heard of gouache paint, but the powerful medium might just become your go-to pigment. Gouache is like both watercolor and acrylic paint, as it has to be mixed with water in order to spread across your canvas or paper. It's made up of a high ratio of color pigment and a solid white pigment (such as chalk) and produces a rich, velvety texture. Discover how to use it by checking out the artist videos below.
Jess Chung
Visual Mind
Myriam Tillson
arleebean
Mary Sanche
When you are ready to take the next step and dive into paid lessons, check out My Modern Met Academy's online painting classes.
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