In this introductory lesson, we provide you with everything you need to know to be prepared to take this course. We will then dive right into drawing exercises as Master Ercole Pignatelli shows you...
In this second lesson we will introduce you to a variety of standard drawing and painting materials. We will cover different types of paper, brushes, paint, and more. Finally, we will take an in-de...
In the third lesson of this basic course, we will discuss how to create charcoal drawings. We will go through a few types of charcoal and introduce you to light and shade- two hugely important conc...
In this fourth lesson Master Ercole Pignatelli will guide you through a still-life drawing. We will also introduce a unique material called ‘china ink,’ which will produce exciting resu...
In the fifth lesson of this series, we will explore watercolor materials and techniques. Master Ercole Pignatelli breaks down what is often considered a difficult medium so that you can get started...
In this sixth lesson we will detail how to go about painting a nude figure, a prominent motif in classical painting. Master Ercole Pignatelli provides you with a simple approach to tackling a compl...
In the seventh lesson of the basic course, we explore tempera paints as we guide you, step-by-step, through creating a stunning daytime landscape. This lesson will greatly inform your work in terms...
In this eighth lesson, we complement our daytime scene by creating a tempera nighttime landscape. This painting is unique because it involves depicting moonlight rather than sunlight, which creates...
In this concluding lesson, Master Ercole Pignatelli spends a few minutes giving you tips on how to improve upon and keep up your artistic skills.
Ercole Pignatelli was born in Lecce in 1935. As a small child he was fascinated by the delicate embroidery work of his grandmother Maria as well as by the collection of paintings of his grandfather, Ercole, a surgeon. He soon became fascinated by Art, in particular painting, and from his junior school days he began using oil colours: his first painting depicted trees reflected in a pond. At the age of eighteen he left Lecce, first for Rome before then settling in Milano. In 1954 he won the San Fedele Prize, presented by Carlo Carrà. In the same period he met his first gallerist, Carlo Cardazzo, who exhibited his work in Milan and in Venice. These first exhibitions were later followed by two Venice Biennale (1978 and 2011) and dozens of individual and collective exhibitions in Italy and around the world. The Maestro lives and works in Milano.