Tuition

Workshops are available at weekends or midweek. Regular mid-week classes are also held. Beginners and improvers are all welcome, small groups and one to one lessons are also be available.

Ernie has run projects funded by the Arts Council England and other stakeholders helping adults engage in the arts.

Gift vouchers for tuition and artwork are also available.

Beginners and improvers oil painting.

Why not come along and try your hand at oil painting or perhaps you already paint in oils and would like to move on to the next level.

Our expert tutor will guide you through all the materails you need and demonstrate and teach the techniques required to get the best results and enjoyment out of this wonderful medium. Using the safest possible modern materials you will learn traditional and contemporary oil painting techniques.

The studio is set in a beautiful rural location away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. In a custom built dedicated art studio in rural Cambridgeshire, designed and fully equipped with professional workstations for each student.

The one, two and five day courses will commence at 9:30 with coffee. We will then begin activities at 10:00 o'clock until 12:00 with refreshments available and a light lunch will be provided. We will then resume painting at 13:00 until 15:30 after which we can begin a feedback & advice session.

Class numbers are kept low to ensure quality tuition which gives you an incredibly high tutor to student ratio. This ensures the highest quality of experience from a professional artist who has studied the techniques used by the old masters and has been commissioned and awarded multiple times by the Arts Council England (and exhibited nationally with positive press reviews).

Good quality accomodation is available nearby for a whole range of budgets at a range of nearby venues.

The courses are always very welcoming, relaxed and friendly with people leaving having learnt new skills and made new friends.

Dates for this course are

Please contact us for our current course schedule

Each day course is £95.00, the weekend is £190.00 per person which includes a light lunch and all materials to get you started (does not include accomodation or transport).

To book please use the contact button above.

We look forward to seeing you there !

Learn the techniques of the old of masters

This course will teach the techniques of the old masters in both the informational and practical skills needed to paint in this style. From preparing the support through to the finished painting, including such things as drawing the image, transfering the image to the support, support preperation, mediums, initial layers, glazing and finishing the painting, and of course the materials used etc.

The two and five day courses will commence at 9:30 with coffee. We will then begin activities at 10:00 o'clock until 12:00 with free refreshments availble throughout the day. A llight lunch will be provided and we will then resume tutoring at 13:00 until 15:30 after which we can begin a feedback and advice session, although the studio will be open for some time for you to carry on painting if you wish.

Class numbers are kept to a maximum of eight to ensure quality tuition from a professional artist who has studied the techniques used by the old masters and has been commisioned and awarded mutilpe times by the Arts Council England, and exhibited nationally with positive press reviews. So you can rest assured of the breadth of knowledge and skill. This gives you an incredibly high tutor to student ratio to ensure the highest quality of experience.

Good quality accomodation is available nearby for a whole range of budgets.

The courses are always very welcoming, relaxed and friendly with people leaving having learnt new skills and made new friends.

We look forward to welcoming you.

Please contact us for our current course schedule

£475.00 per person which includes a light lunch and materials (does not include accommodation or transport)

To book please use the contact button above.

Some participant reviews

"Ernie is an excellent tutor and mentor in the field of painting in the old masters techniques. His work is exceptional and he will take you on a journey back to the days where beauty meets simplicity."

"Beautiful surroundings to paint and relax for a couple of days. The host, Ernie is very hospitable and patient which makes one feel at ease. His work is very inspiring and he encourages you to be free in your expression."

“My wife and I have just enjoyed the most amazing experience with Ernie on a full day's oil painting course, in his lovely studio.

Ernie was recommended to us by a friend and whilst it was some way for us to get to Cambridge, to say it was well worth the trip and the overnight stay is an understatement!

Ernie could not have been more welcoming when we arrived, and after the initial introductions, we were introduced to the studio, which provided the perfect setting for a great days art. The lighting was perfect, it was warm and comfortable, with gentle music playing in the background, which was very relaxing...a bit like Ernie himself, laid back and relaxed and yet totally inspiring 😉

We have been on a fair few art courses, but never tried oils before. Ernie explained things brilliantly, and he was also very patient with us - no matter how many questions we threw at him! lol. Nothing was too much trouble, which also really helps to put you at ease.

He went through the basics with us, as well as progressively more advanced techniques throughout the day, including drawing techniques, form, perspective, mixing of colours and various brush strokes to name but a few. To our amazement we advanced so quickly with Ernie's expert tuition (which was the best we had ever experienced), that by the end of the day, we had both managed to produce two really good standard oil paintings that we would proudly hang in our home.

The paintings were great, but it was the whole experience that made it such an amazing and rewarding day. If you are really lucky, you may even meet the lovely Simone, Ernie's wife who kindly prepared a delicious lunch for us as well.

Super lovely people, great tuition, good quality and generous quantities of art materials supplied, a lovely lunch included and somehow, 2 oil paintings by the end of the day.

Ernie, thank you for one of the best days out we can remember! Awesome and to anyone else tempted to have a day with Ernie, don't hesitate!! He really is AMAZING at what he does 🙂“

A typical Demonstration review

We welcomed Ernie Butler who took us down the road of exploring Charcoal and Ink.

"What a night!”

I didn't expect the evening to be so interesting and inspiring. Ernie is an artist and art tutor who paints in oil and draws in pencil,charcoal and ink.

He exhibits internationally, teaches and demonstrates. He took us on a journey of how to apply charcoal and also it's history.

We learned it was the earliest form of art used by the Egyptians and the Chinese. He said he liked to paint in the style of Turner and Caravaggio showing us examples of both. He even discussed his drawing principals,the seven principals from which you can draw anything.

We all agreed the way he demonstrated his art in charcoal and ink was so informative held our attention right up until the end. Personally I would love him to return and next time demonstrate his in oil technique. A great evening enjoyed by all. Well done Ernie many thanks from us all."

More about the tutor - Ernie Butler

Ernie Butler is an artist and art tutor who paints in oils and draws in pencil, charcoal and ink. He exhibits nationally, teaches, demonstrates and has been funded by the Arts Council England, as well as others.

He trained under William Calladine who was apprenticed to the last living Dutch old master Jan Hendrik Eversen on courses specifically designed to teach the techniques used by the old masters, using the Flemish technique.

He has also extensively studied these techniques as well as others including specific artists such as Turner, Constable etc. Having studied the techniques of the old masters he has incorporated these methods into his own art.

His work displays a sense of light and atmosphere.

http://erniebutler.com/artists/erniebutler/T&C's.pdf