Painting Chickens & Flowers
April 10–12 | Glen Allen, Virginia
Join Teresa Oaxaca for an immersive three-day painting experience set on a charming backyard farm, where you will work directly from live chickens and fresh floral arrangements to create vibrant, expressive still-life paintings.
This workshop combines direct observation, professional photography, and studio painting—giving you the tools real painters use to work with animals, fleeting subjects, and complex compositions.
What You’ll Learn
You will receive full hands-on instruction, including:
How to paint feathers, fur, flowers, and form with confidence
How to organize a dynamic still life using color, light, and gesture
How to capture high-resolution reference photos of moving animals
How to paint effectively from both life and photography
How to improve brushwork, edges, and compositional flow
Daily demonstrations, individual critiques, and painting lectures will guide you from setup to finished work.
Live Chickens & Photography Session
At the start of the workshop, Teresa will lead a live photography session showing how to stage, light, and photograph the chickens before they inevitably wander off the still-life table. You’ll learn how professional painters capture usable references when working with animals and wildlife.
You are encouraged to bring a tablet, laptop, or viewing device so you can paint from your own photos as well as from life. Teresa will also share selected images with the class.
Floral Arrangement Demonstration
eresa will demonstrate how to arrange flowers for painting while discussing:
lighting
color harmony
gesture
and visual movement
These skills apply not only to still lifes, but also to pet portraits, wildlife painting, and fine art studio work.
What’s Included
Easels provided
Daily demonstrations and critiques
Meals provided
Parking on site
Hotel recommendations available upon request
The exact studio address will be sent after registration.
Painting Chickens & Flowers- April 10-12, Glen Allen, Virginia
A 16x20" canvas or thereabouts should be a good size.
Supply list- This list is what Teresa Oaxaca uses herself. Please feel free to substitute any colors you find too troublesome to acquire. It is optional to have the same materials for this course.
Brushes
Filbert, flat of Round. It is recommended that you acquire a “full set” (sizes 1-12) range, or skip every other size if you want to bring less brushes to class.
Paints-
Ultramarine Blue Green Shade (Natural Pigments (or any ultramarine blue from Old Holland or Michael Harding or another brand of your choice)
Chromium Oxide Green
Viridian
Lemon Ochre (or any Yellow Ochre)
Cadmium Lemon
Cadmium Orange
Venetian Red
Rose Madder (or Alizarin Crimson, our Permanent Rose)
Cypress Umber Raw Dark (or a raw Umber)
Lead White (or Titanium white, Flake White Replacement)
Bone/Ivory Black
Cadmium Red i
Cerulean Blue
French Sienna
Mediums- Age Refined Linseed Oil, Stand Oil
Canvas Support- One stretched and primed linen canvas (or panel), size up to you.
